The Chong Sheng Trilogy: War
by Dorkness Rising
Summary: AU from 2x15, and first of a trilogy. As Aang and his friends continue their search for Appa, the Fire Nation escalates its goal to topple Ba Sing Se. Zutara, Sokki. COMPLETE.
1. Words of Wisdom

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

The Dreaded Author's Notes OHNOES!!: This an AU taking off from episode 2.15 ("Tales of Ba Sing Se").

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The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 1: Words of Wisdom

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After careful consideration, Katara decided that she did not, in fact, like Ba Sing Se at all. Of course, being that "careful consideration" consisted of sore feet, a parched throat, and the Great Gran-Gran of All Headaches, this did not come as much of a surprise.

She hadn't been able to picture a city that could be so enormous yet so claustrophobic before she experienced such a thing for herself. And no doubt the strangle hold Long Feng had on the people's peace of mind had more than a little to do with it. And then there were the walls. Like a miniature labyrinth above ground. She supposed that was their biggest advantage; it would be awfully hard to invade a city if the army kept getting lost.

Although, she reasoned, more places to sit down and drink something rather than buy clothes and curiosities would be rather nice. Especially when one had to split her waterskin with her bending skills.

Appa was the first priority at the moment while they waited for an audience with the Earth King, assuming that the paperwork had actually been put through and Joo Dee hadn't been lying through her mask of a smile. Which, considering she'd just been replaced by an even creepier woman uttering the exact same deaf-to-common-sense rhetoric, was highly doubtful.

All in all, Katara was beginning to doubt that Appa was even in Ba Sing Se. Or he was hidden by some kind of optical illusion. Because really, in a city of perhaps a couple million people, who could miss a ten-ton fluffy monster with an arrow on its head?

But then, this city was in all respects gigantic. He could literally be miles away where no one in the area she was combing had seen him. She sighed, forcing one foot in front of the other. What was it with all the wild goosemonkey chases? Couldn't they go two minutes without getting into some kind of life-altering trouble?

_Of course not. This is war, remember?_

How easy to forget in a place like Ba Sing Se, where remembering what was going on outside the city walls was a good way to get you dragged off by creepy officers who moved like shadows through the bedroom in the dead of night. The thought of them, of cold hands clapping over her mouth before she could scream and the strength of granite itself immobilizing her while they whisked her down a dark hallway, was enough to send a cold shudder down her back despite the dry heat all around her. Stay away from the Dai Li, the official had told them. Well, now she knew why.

She rounded the corner, dragging a hand across her forehead. So far, she'd seen more shops than restaurants in this district. If Long Feng himself were to hand her a glass of water, she might possibly be tempted to shake his hand. The dust in the air didn't help matters. She hated dust, how it got in her eyes and up her nose and down her throat and stuck to damn near everything. Part of her wondered how Toph could stand being covered in it.

She supposed it was an Earthbender thing, and definitely one she could use right now. But a drink and a comfortable chair would do in a pinch. Unfortunately, she wasn't going to find either one unless she kept walking, blistered feet and tired legs and parched throat be damned.

And then, up ahead, she saw it.

Perhaps some unknown deity of luck was smiling on her today. Perhaps there was an alignment of the heavens at that very moment that she didn't know about. Or perhaps it was just a lovely little coincidence. Whatever it was, she didn't care, because the sign above the door that read "Teahouse" was the most beautiful thing she'd seen in this city yet.

A grin plastered across her lips, she headed for the doorway.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"Yeah, a flying bison. You know, huge? Hairy? Eats a lot? Covers you in slobber if he likes you? Believe me, you couldn't miss him if you wanted to."

"I'm sorry, young man, but the closest I've ever seen to that is a mountain kangawolf. Except the only reason he'd like you is if you tasted like a chickenpig. Fortunately, they seem to think humans taste like old sandal straps."

Sokka blinked, not knowing whether to laugh or be intrigued, so he settled for being confused. "Um...thanks anyway?"

"No problem, Sonny. I do hope you find him, though."

He nodded, turning to catch up with Toph as quickly as the street crowd would allow. "You were right. This place is strange and the people _are_ crazy."

"Told you," she replied. "Seriously, I don't think anyone's seen him. And even if they did, I'd bet you a cave full of fire rubies that they wouldn't say so."

He sighed, defeated. "This is hopeless, isn't it?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"So where else should we waste time that could be spent doing much more productive things? Like listening to a brainwashed tour guide?"

Toph was about to answer when a frantic trilling caught his attention, and a pair of clawed feet landed on his head. He looked up, although he really hadn't needed to. "Momo?" The lemur clicked his teeth as he climbed down to Sokka's shoulder, waving a tuft of fur in one hand and gesturing wildly with the other.

"You found him?" Sokka gasped.

"Or at least something of him?" Toph added.

Momo made a few more pleading noises, before launching aloft down the street. Sokka pumped his fist, taking off after him. "Finally! C'mon, let's go!"

"Right behind you!" Toph yelled, following him with pounding footsteps.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

No, he thought, Fate wasn't subtly mocking him. Fate was past mocking him. Fate had moved on to openly laughing her old wrinkled head off at him, like he was sure the shop patrons would do if he didn't walk around with a permanent scowl that threatened to cut up and eat with sauce anyone blindingly stupid enough to cross him. And wash it down with something other than tea, because was as sick of the stuff as any mortal could ever hope to get. Sick of the smell and the taste and the way the damn leaves stuck to his fingers if they were the least bit wet, and _especially_ the way the powder would go up his nose when grinding and cause at least two sneezing fits a day. More if Fate was feeling particularly sadistic.

The Crown Prince of the Fire Nation in a tea apron, serving customers and smelling like an herb garden. He could almost hear Azula snickering somewhere in the back of his mind. Fine. She could stay there. As long as all she did was laugh at him, he counted himself well off.

The little bell at the front of the shop tinkled again, indicating a customer. He inwardly groaned, noting that the place was busy enough as it is and hoping this one was sober enough to leave a decent tip. Not like the kind who usually showed up at this hour for a cup of Iroh's strongest black tea with peppermint to take care of their hangovers. With a heavy sigh, he looked up to meet the new arrival.

The rehearsed greeting died in his throat.

Her. No, couldn't be. Was he seeing things? Working too hard? Was it possible to get high off the smell of tea? Had he fallen asleep standing up and gotten caught in some kind of surreal nightmare world?

No, no, probably not, and hell no.

_Damn_.

He scampered into the back as if he had the Rough Rhinos on his tail, pulling Iroh aside in a harsh whisper. "Uncle, we have a problem."

"What is it?"

"_She's_ here."

Iroh laughed. "Well you shouldn't be surprised that Miss Jin would--"

"Not her! The one travelling with..._him_."

Iroh arched a brow. "Well if that isn't an odd coincidence..."

His voice fairly squeaked with panic. "What the hell do I do? If she outs us..."

"We're short-staffed, and she's liable to recognize me even sooner. You'll have to play it natural and hope for the best."

"Uncle! Are you--"

"You have no other choice. If you try to back out, you'll only look like you have something to hide."

There were no words to convey how much he hated it when the man was right. None at all.

He stiffened, swallowing half the lump in his throat before heading out to the floor to greet her. She looked like hell, he noticed, what with street dust all through her hair and clothes, and the telltale way she attempted to sit with her feet not touching the floor. Blisters, he surmised, noticing the edge of one poking above her sandal strap. A part of him came close to pitying her, until he remembered a column of snow and a splitting headache.

He gulped down the other half of that lump and approached the table. The words he'd said with mindless ease to so many other faces -- severe faces, friendly faces, heart-stoppingly beautiful faces, and faces which made him want to crawl under a chair and whimper like a four-year-old however he dared not admit it -- had to force themselves out of his throat.

"Welcome to the Twin Leaves. May I take your order, or do you need more time?"

She finally raised her head. The sick, squishy knot in his stomach became a two-ton block of icy dread as her eyes widened. The corners of her mouth dropped, and the tiniest gasp flew from her lips. "_You_."

He hadn't the faintest idea how he managed an even face and tone as he replied without missing a beat. "Our specials today are green jasmine, spiced oolong, and full-leaf black ginger peach. We also have a premium blend selection. The best in the world."

The complete disbelief written across her features almost made the whole thing worthwhile. "I'll have the...uh...spiced oolong."

He bowed and nodded, before heading into the back. "One spiced oolong, Uncle."

"Well that went smoother than expected."

The tremor in his voice was audible. "Please don't hex it."

"Of course not," Iroh agreed, grinding up the teacake and adding it to the empty cup. "After this one, you can have a break to go take care of the bad leaves out back. It will give you a chance to calm yourself."

Never in his life had he imagined such elation at the thought of garbage duty as he took the cup and the pot of water. "Thank you, Uncle."

He didn't dare make eye contact as he poured her tea. Not that it mattered; he felt that stare like an icy needle to the throat. Of all the tea shops in the entire city, he wanted to find out what it was that made her walk into _this_ one. And kill it with fire.

The other customers went by in something of a blur until it was time to take her empty cup and the money into the back. Iroh gave him an encouraging pat on the shoulder as he took the rejected leaves out to the disposal bins, wrapping them in layers of cloth to hide the smell as they decomposed later.

He was afraid this would happen. A fear that gnawed at him from the time he woke up to the time he went back to bed, and usually had a midnight snack in his sleep every few days. That they we would be found out and sent on the run yet again, uprooted like an oak in a typhoon. It was one thing being a refugee with only one nation after you. Literally running from the world because everyone and anyone who could wanted to kill you on sight -- or worse, apprehend you so you could be tortured first by those of your own nation -- was a whole other Pai Sho table.

His legs were _still_ shaking. She could've ruined him in there. Not that she hadn't already. Because he was positive that her next course of action would be telling the Avatar so they could get the hell out of this place. Escaped again. All because he was too busy serving tea and being upstanding to remember what his mission was.

Fate, he concluded, was having far too much fun with this.

"Dare I ask what you're doing here?"

Something inside him fell to the ground and shattered like a cheap vase. What was it about taking comfort in the notion that one's day couldn't possibly get any worse that made it do _just that?_

"Serving tea, apparently," he replied. "Though I don't see what concern it is of yours."

"You being anywhere near me or my friends is a big concern of mine. Or have you forgotten--"

"No, I haven't," he snapped. "Unfortunately, I'm far too busy to try and kill you right now. But I suggest you get yourself out of here before I change my mind. Nightfall isn't for several hours, and with a sun like this it wouldn't take me long to finish you. I've had a lousy day at work."

She sighed, exasperated. "Look, I'm not trying to start anything. If I was, I wouldn't have spared you a scene back there. I'm tired, I'm thirsty, and my feet hurt, and this was the first place I found to have a drink and sit down. I didn't expect to find the guy who's been trying to kill me and kidnap my friend for the last few months, much less for him to be my waiter. Pardon me if I'm just a bit confused and wanting to know what the hell is going on."

He paused in wrapping a fourth bundle of leaves, his eyes finding a particularly ugly cobblestone to fix themselves on. "I'm a refugee. Just like everyone else in this godforsaken place. Happy now?"

"Right. Because all the other refugees hunt the Avatar with their own warships, and have family members trying like hell to kill them."

He finally raised his head to look at her. "That's a matter of honor. Now shut up and leave."

Her eyes narrowed, hands tightening into fists at her sides. "Honor? He saved your life in a blizzard, and you're _still_ trying to capture him. You have any idea what the word even _means?_"

Of all the responses he'd expected from her, that wasn't one of them. And as such, all the comebacks he'd been anticipating to use vanished as if they had never been considered, leaving him standing there with a bundle of tea leaves in his hands and feeling as if he'd been caught out of the bath.

"Never thought about it, did you? 'Cause you're too busy letting your whole crazy nation tell you what to do with your life, and apparently you've screwed up so badly even _they_ don't want you anymore."

Something in his chest twisted painfully, like a steel coil still in the forge. His mouth opened to shoot off a half-thought reply when she cut him off.

"Oh don't you even. Do you really think everything will go back to normal once you hand over the Avatar? Do you really think they won't just take him and toss you away like the sack of bad tea leaves you have there? Because if you sincerely believe that, I know some long lost Air Nomads who would love to kick your butt at Pai Sho."

_Don't kill her, you'll just get arrested...Don't kill her, you'll just get arrested..._

"I said _shut up!_ I'm not explaining myself to anyone, least of all you. I sure as hell don't have to. Now either leave me alone, or I'll be forced to think you _want_ to be turned into a smoking pile of ash. Believe me, I'm more than willing to arrange it."

She grinned, smug and cocky and in every way hateable. "Oh sure, keep on telling yourself that. Go ahead and write off reality when it's ugly. Your kind are so damn predictable...I'd laugh if it were actually funny."

That was it. If she didn't close her mouth for good within the next minute, he would be doing it for her with a needle and thread. "Awfully big words for someone who has no clue what the hell she's on about. You know_nothing_ about my nation or its people."

She folded her arms across her chest, the grin shrinking just a little. "Oh really? I don't know anything about the nation that killed my mother and almost wiped out my entire tribe?"

He silently cursed her, looking away, nevermind that he'd left himself wide open for it. "You only know what you want to know."

Her stare hardened, he could feel it. "And I'm not the only one. She called you a traitor, a disgrace to your people. From the little I do know, if I were you, I'd be flattered."

"But you're not," he snapped, "so whatever you would do is irrelevant. You have no idea who _I_ am."

Her voice dropped in a way that made his stomach squirm. "And apparently, neither do you."

He almost dropped the tea leaves, snapping up to look at her. She wore a thoroughly dangerous expression; cold and angry and radiating more disgust and contempt for a single person than even he ever thought possible. He'd seen the look on his sister's face enough times, more often than not right before she visited some hideous childish torture on her next unsuspecting victim. The words wouldn't come, blocked off like a dammed river.

"You're a coward" she said. "Someone so afraid of thinking for himself that he'll blindly follow the words of anyone who says what he wants to hear, whether they're true or not. Someone so desperate to regain honor he never had that he would go on a wild goosemonkey chase to find something nobody thought existed. And someone so terrified of standing up for himself that he'll hide in a tea shop and hope it all goes away instead of doing anything about it. That's what you are. A coward. Actually, not even a coward. A pathetic, weak, spineless_husk_ of one."

Rage built inside him at every word. From the toes up, searing hot and freezing cold at the same time, making his stomach clench in coiled steel knots and his chest burn from the inside out and his blood turn to steam in his veins. She wasn't going there. She wasn't even thinking of going there, the little bitch.

_Dad's gonna kill you! Really, he is._

_Why would he banish you if he didn't care?_

_In his eyes you are a failure and a disgrace to the Fire Nation. You have the scar to prove it._

_You will learn respect, and suffering will be your teacher!_

"For the last goddamn time, _shut up!_" he yelled. "It's so _easy_ for you to stand there and judge someone else when you don't know_anything!_ When you've been holed up safe in snow and ice, have had _nothing_ to worry about except waiting for your soldiers -- if they can even be _called_ that -- to come back home. When you've had friends willing to bail you out of_anything!_ When you have a clear purpose and know _exactly_ what you're supposed to do! When you've _never_ had to question yourself, your actions, or your goals!"

He fought back the angry stinging in his eyes and tremor in his fists, fought to lower his voice, felt it drop to a dangerous rasping growl.

"When you've lost everything...your friends, your family, even your worth as a living, breathing creature and have no chance of getting any of it back, when you've been lied to so many times that you can't even trust yourself anymore, _then_ you can talk about pathetic. Until then, shut up. Just. _Shut. Up._"

He didn't even bother to catch the look on her face before he turned around and stormed back into the shop.

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Fire. Everywhere.

Suki ducked through streams, blasts, and suspended walls of it, and that didn't even count the occasional forks of crackly blue death that she thanked her shield for blocking. Like she did now, before having to turn and disperse a wave of blue flames with her fan.

The other Kyoshi warriors had managed to lead the two women accompanying her away, leaving Suki to contend. Leader to leader. She took a bit more delight than she should have in that, twirling her fan to break up another fireblast.

_So much for fans feeding flames._

The other woman jumped back, and Suki raised her shield against a particularly vicious crackle of lightning. She smirked above the rim before spinning behind her assailant with a high kick to the neck. The woman went down, rolling into a crouch with a cold glare.

"That's all the Fire Nation can throw at us now?" Suki scoffed. "How the mighty are falling."

A barrage of fireblasts answered her, most of which she blocked with her shield, and one made her wince as it singed her ankle. She ignored the pain, looking for her opening as the girl readied another strike.

Suki charged, elbow first, driving into her as blue lightning flew from her fingers. They both hit the ground, and she brought her shield in front to pin her as she fell.

"Not so hot stuff when you can't bend, are you?" she sneered, smirking.

The woman growled in indignation, struggling against Suki's weight atop the shield, both of them pressing her into a sprawl that didn't allow for much leverage. Or movement of any kind, really. The girl bared her teeth in a snarl above the shield's rim, before her lips curved into an equally animalistic grin.

"Whatever you and your circus clown rejects do to me is irrelevant."

"Oh really?" Suki snickered. "If all of the Fire Nation's military is as incompetent as this, it makes me wonder _why_ this war has gone on for a century."

"You'll soon find out," the girl said, a cryptic gleam in her eye, "on a scale such as this world has never seen in all of history. By the time you fools can give a name to what hit you, it will be far too late to do anything about it. Not that you could anyway."

Suki's confident smirk melted to reflect the dread those words inspired. Was she serious?

Before she had a chance to consider it, her opponent took advantage of the slacking of her muscles, enough to throw her off with a sudden turn. Suki rolled as a fireblast charred the ground she'd been laying on, and rose to her feet. The other girl took off running, heading into the cover of the surrounding woods.

Her first instinct was to chase down the bitch and give her the royal Kyoshi treatment. But she squashed those thoughts. If the revelation was true, there were far more pressing things to be concerned about. She turned back toward the clearing in a lope, just as one of the other warriors came to meet her, blood running down her face.

"Suki, they've escaped!"

"Let them go," she said. "We have other matters to attend to. The Fire Nation is planning a grand-scale strike."

"What? Where?"

Suki shook her head. "No details yet. But make ready to head for Ba Sing Se. We must warn the Avatar, and quickly."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	2. Fading Twilight

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

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The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: WAR

Chapter 2: Fading Twilight

* * *

The ferry, Azula concluded, was positively hateful. And if it was any indicator of what Ba Sing Se was going to be like, then she was two steps away from just waiting it out. The Avatar was going to have to leave sometime. The only thing stopping her was the consideration that the longer she waited to find him, the more likely her brother, incompetent and utterly stupid as he was, might have a stroke of luck and do something right for a change.

Ty Lee slept to her one side while Mai twirled a throwing knife in perpetual boredom at her other. She couldn't imagine the thought of having to disguise an entire Honor Guard as refugees. Three women with very obvious well-bred features were hard enough, and she was fortunate to have enough Earth Kingdom coin on her to pay for the tickets and secure disguises.

Or rather, fortunate enough that those made-up freaks from their last skirmish had yielded some. She smiled to herself. Baiting them had been far too easy. All she had to do was follow that girl straight to the Avatar.

Until then, a bowl of something that didn't taste like it was cut from a cow-bison's stomach and left to mould for the last five years in jungle heat would've been nice. Did these people dare to call this slop food? It was a wonder the whole ship hadn't keeled over dead. The notion of using it as either a chemical weapon or a new fuel source didn't seem too farfetched as she attempted to eat it with a straight face.

All this to blend in with a crowd of unwashed pigs. She silently prayed to the Sun God for no more undercover missions unless they involved sprawling estates, seduction, and possible poisoned wine.

"So what's the plan when we get to the city?" Mai asked, sounding raspy and half asleep as usual.

"We all split up to cover more ground," she muttered. "If you two find him first, do not engage him. Tail him and send word to me."

"Why do we get all the boring jobs?"

"That only goes for him. Any of his little friends are all yours."

"Thank God."

Azula grinned. _Thought you'd see it my way. Now if only you would stop calling me that out of private..._

Ty Lee stirred, rubbing her eye and groaning. "Mmmh...One flip, two splits, and a fold, I know already!...Huh?"

"Glad you decided to join us," Azula quipped, her grin fading to a slight scowl.

Ty Lee reddened, a hand rubbing behind her neck. "Well...um...there wasn't a whole lot to do on the ride, so I thought catching up on sleep might be a good idea! You know, take advantage when you can because--"

"You could've stayed awake to listen to the plan for when we reach our destination."

She fidgeted, biting her lip. "I-I'm sorry. Won't happen again."

"Good. Now, this is the last time. I'm not going to repeat myself. We split up to cover ground quickly. If you find his friends, do with them as you wish to beat his location out of them. If you find him, tail him for as long as you can and alert me. But remember that he is mine."

"Gotcha," she gulped, before pressing a hand to her stomach. "Aw man, I'm starved!" She looked over at the unfinished bowl of what purported to be stew, but looked like someone dug it out of the drill weapon's slurry. "You gonna eat that?"

Azula took a moment of customary disgust before relinquishing it. "No."

"Yay!" She dug in, seemingly unperturbed by the thought of what the substance might've been in a former life. Azula looked away before her stomach could turn any harder.

_Note to self: never invite her to dinner again._

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Katara pushed the door to the apartment open, glad she had arrived home before anyone else. Because she was not ready to face a barrage of questions about why she looked like she'd just gotten done arm-wrestling a platypus bear. She wanted to go take a bath, wash her face, and smash an ice tower. In that order.

No, she told herself, she was not going to be sorry for giving that asshole a piece of her mind. Not after he'd kidnapped Aang and kicked her and the rest of them around like stones at a playground. Not after his nation nearly destroyed everything she loved. Harsh words were the least of the pain she wished she could deliver. Fortunately for him, she didn't fancy getting arrested, though part of her was tempted just for an opportunity to throw the Dai Li into the wall after him.

She started the bath, watching the water swirl between her fingers. No doubt running into him meant he knew Aang was close by. If he had changed as much as she surmised since he'd sent a fireblast over their heads for daring to want to help him, she figured it was only a matter of time before he was back up to his old tricks. She had to warn Aang.

But they still had to see the Earth King. And find Appa.

She felt as though she were tied to a barrel of blasting jelly, watching helplessly as the fuse burned ever shorter.

Perhaps they could hold Zuko off until then? It wasn't like he was terribly competent at this sort of thing. Even when he'd finally succeeded in kidnapping Aang, the guy seemed to have a knack for running into unplanned disaster. If he did make trouble, she reasoned, it wouldn't be much more than they were currently dealing with, and definitely not more than they could handle. The basin filled finally. Heated, but not to where steam curled from the surface. She figured it best to wash up without cooking herself as she stripped off her clothes and grabbed the cloth from the table. Getting the dust and grime off her skin had never felt better, though she was careful of the blisters on her feet.

_It's so easy for you to stand there and judge someone else when you don't know anything!..._

No, _he_ was the one being the arrogant moron. All she had done was call him out on it. He was only mad because she was right, she knew she was right, and he knew she knew it. It was a great reason for any spoiled, proud son of a pighound to blow a gasket when left with nothing to argue against.

Except that try as she might, she couldn't stop the shudder down her back.

It wasn't what he said. She'd heard worse out of Aang in cases of extreme distress, rare as they were. Things that made her wince inside just because it was Aang -- sweet, kind, patient to a fault and completely lovable for it Aang -- who said them. Heck, she'd heard some downright nasty things out of her own brother -- directed at her, no less. She could handle being told to shut up in the most scathing manner possible. And it wasn't as if she never gave as good as she got.

It wasn't even his tone, either. Her friends, her brother, even her Gran-Gran had all given it to her more harshly than that. And admittedly, she'd dished it out just as well herself, especially to people she cared about. Screaming at people and being screamed at were hardly rare occurrences in her life. Having Sokka for a brother had jaded her long before she ever met Aang.

It was the _look_, on his face and in his eyes, that she would never in a hundred years forget. The look of a wound she hadn't known existed, the bandages torn off and the stitches ripped open and salt and acid ground into it with a broken heel. Rage and bitterness and _how dare you_, the scar on his eye alive, pain radiating from him like heat off a candle flame. The look that flat out told her she'd gone too far, and that she deserved whatever he had to throw at her. A look she'd seen many times before, and no doubt would be seeing many more.

The look that Aang always got right before he reached Avatar State. The look that made her want to hug him and take it all away. Every time.

She stared down at the water basin. "Hello, Mister Ponytail Guy. How's your uncle doing after he took that lightning bolt to the shoulder? Oh, just peachy. Care for a cup of tea? The jasmine's half-price today."

The last time they crossed paths, he had helped them fight that psychotic sister of his -- granted, after she had just attacked someone dear to him -- only to have her turn around and tear him a new one just for the crime of being there. She hadn't meant to start anything. That much had been true. But in the end, her temper had gotten away from her, like it did every time.

She sighed, squeezing out the cloth with tense hands. How was she supposed to know that giving him a hefty dose of reality would...no. There was no rationalizing it. She'd gone too far, and until she swallowed her pride and corrected it, that face, that look, those words, and the cracking of the voice that shouted them would come back to haunt her like the beat of some ghastly demonic heart beneath the floorboards.

She knew what she had to do. And she liked the idea about as much as she liked washing Sokka's clothes after The Whaling Trip That Must Never Be Spoken Of Again.

And like the laundry, such a task was best done before the stain had time to set.

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Momo led them through crowded streets with enough twists and turns to confuse a prairie mole, trilling ahead of them if Sokka found himself falling behind. Part of him hoped Momo had actually found something and that this wasn't one of his nonsense or games at best, and at worst a plan to steal food from some angry vendors who might come after them with freshly sharpened blades.

They turned another corner, finding the crowds beginning to thin a bit, and progressively more until the streets were nearly clear, save for a lone stroller. This was one of the less developed districts, he assumed, as they slowed to a walk. "Momo? Are you sure you found something besides overturned trash cans?"

The lemur perched himself on an unlit streetlamp as they stepped into the clearing. Sokka looked around, noting the broken carts and run-down houses and pots and barrels full of stuff that made his nose burn. No sign of a giant fluffy monster with an arrow on his head. He sighed, turning back to Momo.

"Buddy, he's not here. What the heck did you find?"

"This," Toph said, making him turn to where she knelt at the cobblestones, in front of what looked like a large pile of matted straw. "He was here."

"How can you tell?"

"His scent. We've been travelling with him long enough that I'd recognize it anywhere." She felt along the straw, dipping her hands through it. "The hay is matted down. Like something really heavy crushed it from the top..."

His eyes narrowed as he rubbed his chin. If he was here, then where would he have gone? Why would Momo have led them to this particular spot? He looked back at the hay, brows drawing together. "We've been going about this all wrong."

"What do you mean?"

"Back home," he said, "we had an old saying among the hunters. 'It takes an orca to catch a fur seal.'" At her doubtful frown, he sighed. "We're thinking too much like humans. To figure out where Appa went, we have to think like a sky bison."

Toph stood, turning to him and folding her arms. "Well if you ask me, you're already thinking like a huge furry creature of limited intelligence."

"Very funny," he scowled. "But really, looking at this from Appa's perspective might lend us some clues." He turned to one of the dead streetlamps, wrapping his hands and feet around the pole and shimmying up to the top, just under the lantern.

It was there. Dusty and misshapen from trampling and rusted brown with dried dew, but unmistakable.

He grinned. _Jackpot!_

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"Is there something the matter?"

"No, Uncle."

"You missed your lunch break."

"I'm not hungry."

"Why--"

"I'm just not, okay?"

"I'm sure you will be later, then. I'll make that mai fun recipe you're so fond of."

"Whatever."

The buzz of the customers faded into a low background hum as he forced his mind to settle itself, to focus on the work to keep his thoughts from wandering back there again. It wasn't working. Try as he might, there was something about being called a blindfolded, cowardly sheep on his way to the slaughter that simply would not leave him be. Especially when it came from an arrogant, smug mouth such as he had only seen on one other face.

Oh, if only the Dai Li hadn't been an issue... He would've glady set that bundle of rotten tea leaves ablaze and shoved it down her throat.

How dare she. How dare that cocky little bitch try to tell him what his mission was when she knew as much about him as he knew about walruseal migration habits. He knew what he wanted. What he had been fighting to win back for over three years now. His country. His throne. His honor. And yes, he knew what they all meant. He was the rightful heir. Honor meant capturing the Avatar so that he could regain his place in line for the throne. So that he wouldn't be a disgrace in the eyes of his nation.

_Do you really think everything will go back to normal once you hand over the Avatar?_

Yes, it had to. His father had said so before kicking him out on the deck of a warship. If he brought back the Avatar, he could have his old life back. He would be the Prince again. He would be worth something. He wouldn't be a disgrace and a failure anymore, since he would have done what neither of his last two predecessors had. That was his purpose, to be the heir to the Fire Nation and carry on the line.

_And if you dare set foot in Fire Nation territory without him, you will be arrested._

Well, that part was customary. It was the way things worked when one got banished.

Oh for Heaven's sake why was he even bothering to dwell on anything she said? She knew nothing about him. All she had was a face. Hell, not even a face, just a scar that happened to be on it. What gave her the right to stand there outside a dumpster and analyze and judge the actions of someone whose name she barely knew?

And what gave her words the right to follow him like this? To cling to him like a cloud of gnats and invade his mind and not let him think of anygoddamnthing else? He could almost see that smug grin in the surface of the tea he'd just poured. Derisive and scoffing and good god he hated her. With the burning passion of a thousand Comets.

No. He knew what he had to do. And nothing, no one -- especially not a Waterbender peasant from the South Pole, even if she could bring a few tons of ice down on his head at will -- was going to convince him otherwise.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Ty Lee's first impression of Ba Sing Se was that it reminded her a lot of the circus; organized, cultured, and although she couldn't see it, probably crazier than an ostrich horse on ten bowls of cactus juice behind the scenes.

But then, everything was reminding her of the circus these days. Of how much she wanted to go back there. To be on stage again, twisting her body in ways few humans could while the crowd raved and threw flowers into the ring. She sighed, adjusting the cheap, rough clothes she'd bought before boarding the ferry. A _shenyi_ so oversized she could pass for a man if she really wanted to. And considering some of the characters she shared the street with, that didn't seem like a half bad idea.

She was almost grateful for the thinning crowds; it made picking out a bald kid with arrows on his head so much easier when he wasn't hidden by a forest of fellow bustlers. But then, it became apparent why this section of town was so deserted.

It smelled, for one thing. And not like the spices, tea, perfume, and leather that was the rest of the city. Here, the stenches of dew and mold reigned, with the notes of rotting wood and stagnant water. For another, there was virtually nothing of cultural value, unless one considered decrepit hovels, broken fences, half-starved livestock, and long abandoned workshops to be points of interest. And from the looks of things, very few people did. The street was empty.

She wrinkled her nose, bringing the collar of her robe up to cover the lower half of her face. How in the hell did people live like this? How were they even allowed to? Admittedly, the circus had its issues; she learned to live with the smell of hay and animals clinging to her. Learned to sleep in the straw when it was cold and blankets were in short supply. Learned to eat stuff that looked and smelled like raw sewage and tasted like the inside of a tomb. She learned to not only tolerate it, but to love it.

The animals were family, there to listen to her vent about difficult routines and nuzzle her with purring solace and unconditional affection when she fed them. The straw was warm and fragrant, fun to flop around in and good for breaking clumsy falls in practice. And even in the worst of times, the stew was still edible and healthier than anything the Academy had fed her.

What she'd told Azula was the truth. She'd never been happier. She loved what she did, loved who she travelled with, and her aura was indeed a giggly shade of pink. With a dash of sparkles.

But this? She looked around, frowning. This was just depressing.

The thought of buying a few pots of paint and dousing everything in her path with a glittering wash of rose pink and magenta with lavender accents had just cropped up when she heard it. Faint, familiar voices. A boy and a girl. Speaking heatedly, but not angrily. More like the tone people use when they discuss something urgent. From what she could tell, they were coming from the next alley over. She slunk along the wall toward the corner, definitely recognizing the guy's voice but for the life of her couldn't put a face to it. One of those far too frequent times when she knew she should feel stupid for forgetting, but was too focused to really give a damn. She would find out soon enough.

Her breath ceased for a moment, not wanting to be heard, as she approached the street's end.

"It's definitely his print. He was standing right there!"

"And judging from the way the hay is pressed down, it was pretty recent, too. Which means there may be other clues around."

Dammit, she new that voice. Now if only her brain would undork itself and cooperate... Footsteps met her ears as she finally poked her head around the wall to see the speakers.

Azula was right, she surmised. She was a Hindering Scatterbrain rather than a Dangerous Lady, but could still whip any member of the Royal Guard into submission if she so chose. How she could forget the cute Water Tribe guy -- who looked even cuter with his limbs hanging limp as overcooked _lo mein_ and still trying to make himself useful -- she'd never know. His companion was a mystery, though.

She watched as the little girl bent close to the ground at the street's edge, feeling along the cobblestones as a frown creased her face. "This was bended recently. There's a broken seam in the stones, and they haven't settled yet."

"Can you tell how exactly it was moved?"

She stood up, walking along what Ty Lee assumed to be the seam as if it were a tight rope. "I can try. The thing about Earthbending is that rocks have a memory. Kinda. Solid ground can retain the _chi_ pattern used on it if the Earthbender is strong enough. I can see if there's a pattern left here, and use it to repeat what the other Bender did."

She stood back, kneeling and pressing her hands to the ground, her toes curling and uncurling and lips set in a hard, determined line. Minutes passed like hours as she palmed along the stones and dirt, tracing a seemingly random pattern with her fingertips. "I think I've got something..." Ty Lee watched as the girl stood up again, backing away and raising her arms before stomping forward.

The ground erupted, a great slab of the street roughly the length of two buildings suddenly flipping over like a perfect _jian bing_ cake, leaving a cloud of dust that she had to pull her collar up against and try not to cough. Her acquaintance stared in shock as it settled, turning to his companion with a devious grin.

"The only place a ten-ton fluffy monster could ever in a million years hide. We've got to go tell Aang."

Ty Lee smirked. _Yeah, you go do that. Cute people are hard to come by. I'd rather not have to beat them up._

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

The city, Azula concluded, was hardly an improvement over the ferry. Crowded, hot, and dusty, alleys brimming with actual refugees rather than princesses and highborn teammates in disguise. But at least it smelled like something other than sweat and rotting wood and something that crawled into a saucepan by itself and died. Not that tea and spices and textile dyes were much of an improvement. Boring at best. What she wouldn't do for the scent of strong baijiu and leather. But of course, she wasn't going to find any of _that_ in the Earth Kingdom.

She pulled her hair out of her face, regretting having to let down her topknot in order not to broadcast which nation she hailed from. She hadn't quite realized how long it had gotten until she had to take it all down. But no matter. Once she found the Avatar, captured him, and got out of this godforsaken city, she could have Ty Lee put it back up for her.

Of course, spotting someone that short in the crowded streets of Ba Sing Se was going to be...interesting, to say the least. At least he had the Airbender tattoos to make him stand out. Oh, and the shaved head helped, because hair seemed to be quite prized among Earth Kingdom citizenry, and a bald kid in a monk's attire was bound to be noticed.

She rounded a corner into a busier section of the Middle Ring, the busiest she'd seen, actually. Though truth be told the crowd was mostly up ahead of her, a lot of them filing into what purported to be a teahouse on the left. Not that it wasn't expected at this hour. It was late afternoon with a brutal sun. And unlike Firebenders, those of other nations cursed the heat rather than reveled in it. She smirked. Yet another thing to feel superior about.

But that smirk quickly vanished as movement between the river of strollers, shoppers, and otherwise plain-looking citizens caught her eye. A tiny sliver of blue, a shade as familiar as the dark skin it rested against. Her eyes narrowed, watching for it again, spotting it weaving through the crowd and trying to get a better look. Perhaps today was a lucky day as Ty Lee had said with that first step off the train. There wasn't harm in finding out at least. She waited, following the elusive figure until it finally cleared to a gap in the crowd.

Azula knew that dress anywhere. The braid and dark skin, blue eyes and that damned pouch at her belt. Her fists clenched for a moment, wishing desperately for a technique to set fire with her mind and nothing else.

_She travels with the Avatar..._

The reminder seemed to come out of nowhere. They were never separated for long, she mused, observing as the girl headed for the teahouse doors with a purposeful stride. If she found her so quickly, her true quarry couldn't be too far off. She grinned, pulling the hood to her tunic down and following her.

_That's a good girl. Lead me right to him._

TO BE CONTINUED...


	3. Sundown

Disclaimer: I own not, I make naught, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 3: Sundown

* * *

This had to be Azula's idea of punishing her for not crawling through slurry in hot pursuit. There was no other explanation for sending her out into a city more boring than Omashu to go chase quarry that wasn't even hers; an assignment that it didn't take a degree in engineering from Ba Sing Se University to figure out she was going to hate. The fact that she couldn't even attack the little twerp under Azula's orders didn't help.

But then, Mai knew she should have expected it. The Little Princess always had to have it her way. The biggest piece of cake, the last laugh, the best trainers...and now the Avatar. Because she was Azula, the jewel of the Fire Nation. She was The Best, and therefore deserving of nothing but The Best. In a way, it made her feel sorrier for Zuko than for herself, the way he got sent sprawling into that fountain trying to knock a piece of flaming fruit off her head before it burned her. Always the guy trying his damnedest to impress everyone, and getting nothing but drenched for his trouble.

Not to say he couldn't be an utterly deserving moron at times. But to her, that was part of his charm.

Evening had fallen rather swiftly, and she shook her head as she waded through the sea of people crowding the street, her eyes never leaving the bald tattooed target darting between them. She'd gone with Azula to escape boredom, not be thrown chest-deep in it, ordered to do all the legwork that little snot thought herself too important to bother with under pain of electrocution. It made her wonder how Ty Lee was even capable of being her disgustingly perky self under circumstances like these. Did she like taking orders to crawl through sewage just to see Azula smile demonically?

If so, Mai was torn between writing her off as "Most Pathetic Human Alive" and finding that level of crazed devotion mildly interesting.

The boy ahead of her turned a corner into a surprisingly empty side street, shouldering his glider and shielding his eyes from the red glare of the setting sun. She clung to the wall, attempting to move without a sound as she tailed him, yet sorely tempted to be seen on purpose just so something would happen.

That was really what bugged her most about this whole arrangement. Follow Azula. Do what Azula says. Fail. Try again. Lather, rinse, repeat. It was so horribly predictable. Her plans made no sense, and even when they did, she and Ty Lee got stuck with all the boring parts. Such as tailing the Avatar but not being able to fight him. No, that was Little Miss Hot Shot's territory.

It wasn't the first time Mai wished she'd been taken seriously at Omashu. Electrocution was interesting, at least.

He stopped, shoulders slumping in the way her father's always did when things went badly at the office. He leaned against a wall to rest, glider propped beside him like an old man's walking stick.

Lovely. Just lovely. Now she really had nothing to do until the kid decided to start moving again. She braced a hand against her forehead in frustration, trying to count to ten before she did something Azula would definitely make her regret. _Oh for heaven's sake, your feet can't be more tired than mine..._ He didn't move, save for panting against the stone and wiping a hand across his forehead. And from the looks of things, he probably wouldn't be for a good while.

Oh no. This was it. The last straw to break the camule's back. She was not going to wait in a deserted alley for hours with nothing at all to do but admire the little brat's tattoos. Certainly not because the Princess of the Fire Nation told her to.

She readied three blades between her fingers, which were still covered by the too-long sleeves of her tunic, stepping out from the shadows with a purposeful gate. "Looking for something, little boy?"

He tensed, immediately turning to her, seeming to sense the intent in her voice as he braced his glider in front of him. "I know you, don't I?"

She smirked, pulling her hood back with a free hand. "I'd like to think so. Funny meeting you in a place like this, eh Baldy?"

He blinked in surprise before his eyes narrowed again. "You."

"Who else?" She didn't wait another second before launching the blades at him with a sweep of her arm.

He leapt to dodge them, opening his glider with a gust of wind that sent her sliding back on her heels, arm across her face to shield herself from the flying dust and rocks that went with it. She coughed as it died down enough for her to look up, only to find he'd taken off above the rooftops and headed back toward civilization, such as it was.

She cursed inwardly, chasing him down the street in shoes no human should ever be running in, able to feel the edges of cobblestones through the flimsy fabric sole. Now she really couldn't attack him unless she wanted the Dai Whatever-Their-Names-Were breathing down her neck. Lovely. Just lovely.

The irony of the situation was certainly not lost on her. She gritted her teeth, pushing past a man carrying several caged chickens in her determination not to lose sight of the boy, ignoring the sqawking in the background as the man tripped with a yelped curse and the cages cracked open. The thought of using her blades to bring down the glider did occur, but she knew better. He was an expert evader -- typical of an Airbender -- and she would likely waste all her knives before she caught up to him that way.

At least, she mused, giving chase was interesting.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Running along the rooftops, Ty Lee decided, was far more efficient than doing so through the streets. No traffic, no puddles, no loose cobbles to stick up and trip her, and she didn't have to worry about losing sight of her quarry as they ran. The thought of travelling this way once she got back to the Fire Nation was rather enticing, except for the whole gabled roof thing that most houses in her homeland had going. Because falling off would be almost as bad as that one time Mai tried to make _baozi_.

But that would have to wait until Azula captured the Avatar and everyone went home happy. Well, except for the boy, who would be turned over to her father for various war-prolonging political purposes. And Mai, because then there would be nothing to do and she'd have to go back to Omashu and be bored. Though how anyone could be bored in a city where the mail system doubled as a rollercoaster, Ty Lee would never know. Sometimes, she considered the possibility that Mai just made herself bored so she would have something to complain about.

She skipped across the tiled roofs as the Cute Water-Tribe Guy and his companions turned a corner, heading back into the busier sections of the city, teeming with nightlife. The familiar lights and smells wafting up from below did an excellent job of making her realize how very little that bowl of stew on the ferry had been. She'd have to get herself some dinner once she was done tracking the Avatar.

_Speak of the demon..._

He was there, flying just below the rooftops, toward the friends she was tailing. She stopped, perched on the flat of a large home complex, having a rather nice vantage point to watch him swoop down and land before them. They stopped, the lemur perched on the Cute Water-Tribe Guy's shoulder as their bald friend muttered frantically at them. She squinted, wondering what could have him so agitated in such a crowning jewel of a city.

The answer came careening around the bend a moment later. Ty Lee's hand shot to her mouth.

_Oh God..._

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

There were only four hours left of his shift, and each minute seemed to run at a sloth-bear's pace. Waiting and looking and watching his back and half expecting that Water Tribe girl to come back into the shop just to harrass him. And possibly call him out in revenge. And be more believable than Jet, in which case he and his uncle would both be summarily screwed.

Ba Sing Se may have been safe from the Fire Nation. But it wasn't a terribly safe place for Firebenders, even if they were traitors to their own country.

At least, he consoled himself, the girl didn't know where he lived. As soon as he was out the door for the night, he'd be safe and sound and catch the carriage back to the apartment and change and crawl into bed and oh God why couldn't it be closing already? Why couldn't time fly just this once when he needed it to?

The lack of business in the shop made it worse. Fewer distractions meant more time to think and fret and be sick to his stomach with the thought of being packed out of Ba Sing Se and having to find another place to hide. He was sick of hiding. But two against the world were bad enough odds that even he, who sucked at Pai Sho worse than a lobotomized squirrel monkey with a broken wrist, wasn't willing to take a chance on. He brought out another pot of black lychee, throwing a nervous glance to the door as the bell tinkled and very nearly dropping the tray he held.

It was rubbish, what his old childhood trainer said. Anticipation did not make the blow any easier to roll with. It only made the impact harder.

He closed his eyes a moment as he returned the teapot to the tray, carrying it to the back with shaking hands for Iroh to refill. "Uncle...she's back."

"You know what to do. You did it well enough last time."

"I know. I just thought you might like a warning in case it turns ugly."

He handed the tray off to another server, before taking a deeper breath than he knew was necessary and heading back out to her table. Time to act again like he didn't know her at all. Natural. She was a customer, he was a servant, all she had to do was order some damned tea and they could both walk away happy. No need for a scene.

She didn't even give him a chance to greet her. "Black ginger peach."

He didn't even hear himself confirm the order, or even go back and relay it to Iroh. Nor did he hear himself speak as he checked on the other handful of customers while it brewed, or go back to retrieve it once it was done. Only when he was back at her table, pouring her a cup and setting out all the extras, did his attention return.

"I'm sorry about earlier."

For the third time that evening, he came dangerously close to scalding his foot by dropping a pot full of very hot water on it. "Don't mention it."

"I had no--"

"I said don't mention it. I have work to do." Even though a good look around the nearly empty shop said otherwise, and he knew it. He supposed he got points for trying.

"Oh really? Looks like an awfully slow day to me."

He tried very hard to keep his voice low without growling. "There's work in the back to do. Unless you're planning to order something else, let me get back to my job."

She pursed her lips, glaring at him. "Green pomegranate."

He had the sudden urge to toss that pot of scalding hot water in her face, tempered only by the knowledge that she was quite capable of throwing it right back into his.

His steps nearly clicked as he stormed back to the kitchen. "Green pomegranate for the second corner."

Iroh raised a brow. "Somebody's trying awfully hard."

"Don't ask. Please."

"Of course." He handed him the small pot he'd made earlier. "Here you are."

Zuko brought it back to her, teeth gritted as he poured the cup. "Happy now?"

She took it, nodding. "I was out of line. I know I hit a nerve some place, and I had no right to say what I did."

He paused, nearly shaking at that argument, which hadn't ceased to replay in his head all day as he worked. "Why do you insist on making such a pest of yourself?"

"It's called 'humility.' I made a mistake, I know I made a mistake, and I'd like to take responsibility for it."

He suddenly felt cold. Not the usual kind he'd been feeling lately, being so far from his homeland's roasting oven of a climate, but an inner cold. The kind of damp, creeping chill, like icy fingers snaking across his gut. He resisted the overwhelming urge to bite his lip and run, knowing that would only tip her off further. Instead, he simply lowered his head and his voice, fists clenched on the tray to stop his hands shaking.

"Anything else?"

She looked to the side, fingers folded in front of her lips in thought. "Chamomile."

He nodded, heading into the back again to relay the order. Iroh looked up, frowning at the expression Zuko knew he was wearing and hadn't thought to wipe before leaving her table. "May I ask now?"

"I think it's her last order."

"And why would that make you--"

"Please, Uncle," he said, "just make the tea."

"Very well."

Zuko brought it out to her once again when it was ready, setting the tray down without a sound and carefully pouring out her cup, setting it down with the previous two, neither of which had been touched yet. She picked up the first one to sip, quiet for a moment. "I'm not asking for anything. Just to be heard."

He almost didn't want to speak, not trusting what his voice would sound like with so much nervous adrenaline flooding his system. "Well...I heard you."

Heavy silence rushed in to fill the void, the one that had just been torn through his chest, never feeling so empty and conflicted and downright sick in his life. He forced himself to meet her eyes for the first time since she walked in, a contact he'd always tried to avoid when unnerved but found more calming this time despite the charge in the air.

The tinkling of the door bell made him look up with a start at the new arrival, and for the second time that day his heart jumped up into his throat and crashed back down to his gut.

_Oh hell..._

Even in the shabby disguise she wore -- a _shen yi_ that virtually concealed her form beneath swirling robes that made him wonder how she didn't trip -- he knew that face anywhere. The high-bred features, blood-red lips, flashing eyes, and even at rest that haughty expression that let everyone know she knew her station; above all else. Even God, if there was one.

It took her not even two seconds to recognize him, though he supposed it was kind of hard to miss someone with half his face burned off. She smirked that wicked smirk she always did before she unleashed whatever crazy plans she'd been cooking upon her unsuspecting victim.

"Well, well, what have we here? Not quite who I was expecting to find, but I can't really complain, now can I?"

All ten shop patrons, including the Water Tribe girl, had their attention glued on her. He felt torn between letting his legs shake and rushing her out the door where it was safe to fight, not quite wanting to endanger the bystanders -- or his cover -- with such a scene. But both of those choices seemed pretty impossible at the moment, what with his legs refusing to move at all.

Fortunately, the other girl's legs could. She rose from her chair hard enough to shove it back a teetering five inches, striking her bending stance. "I can give you something to complain about if you want it bad enough."

Azula smirked wider, readying a nicely sized fireblast. "I believe we have a deal."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"Aang! We were just about to--"

"No time, guys! We've got company!"

"What company?"

A dagger whizzed past Sokka's ear to confirm it, and he looked up in time to see an eerily familiar face rounding the corner with another blade at the ready. He groaned, starting to draw his club. "I had to ask."

He ducked another pair of blades that flew dangerously close to his neck, wincing at the rush of air as he swiped them away. Aang's staff made that unmistakeable rushing sound as he opened it, a heavy gust racing forward as he swiped it in front of him. The daggers that would've impaled his shoulders flew harmlessly aside, embedding themselves in a lantern post instead. Their assailant growled, readying another blade, but barely had the time to launch it before the ground beneath her feet heaved up, tripping her into a tumble.

Sokka smirked, raising his club to go after her. And that smirk melted into his patented "oh hell" expression as he felt a sharp poke to the shoulder. His arm fell limp, club clattering to the ground and that all too familiar dread rising in the pit of his stomach.

"Long time no see, cutie. Miss me?"

He gulped. "Yeah. Like I miss getting hit with bricks." He spun on a heel, planting a swift kick to her side that sent her tumbling.

"It's about time you showed!" her partner yelled, launching another dagger at Toph only to have it bounce off a conviently raised shield of rock.

"What in the hell were you doing?" Ty Lee shrieked, picking herself up. "You know what she--"

"Not now! We have him, let's do something that makes sense for a change!"

Ty Lee's face went visibly pale as she complied, leaping into a somersault behind Sokka, who met her with a club brandished in front of him. "You've gotten better," she remarked, working around his rather impressive one-armed parrying.

"I'd like to think so." He launched a foot at her chin, which she caught, throwing him into a flip and aiming a point attack for his side. He grimaced, feeling his hip wrench painfully as his leg fell deadweight, cheek meeting the ground with a sore grunt. _Damn_.

"Not nearly enough, though."

He wanted to punch that smirk off her face. With a battering ram. Though his one functioning leg would have to do as he twisted himself up to use it, catching the back of her knee with a hooked ankle and taking far too much delight in watching her sprawl with a look of panic on her face.

Of course, if the ground itself suddenly wrapped around his wrists and ankles in rock solid shackles, he supposed he would be a little bit panicky, too.

"You okay there?"

"Yeah, Toph. The ability to move would be nice, but I'll settle for being alive."

The sound of roaring windblasts got his attention, as he looked up helplessly to see Aang deflecting the other girl's mercilessly hurled daggers with the aid of his glider. Momo circled them as Toph tried to catch the girl's ankles like she'd just done to her partner, though the scary one proved to be a little more focused on her feet.

"You're still new at this, aren't you?" Aang asked between dodging some disturbingly accurate throws.

She smirked. "Some awfully big words coming from a child."

"Technically speaking," he quipped, tossing his head back to avoid getting his throat sliced open, "I'm a _hundred_ and twelve."

"Then I hope you've lived the life you wanted. Because it's about to end very shortly."

No sooner did the words leave her mouth then the ground at her feet suddenly heaved up into a solid wall around her, towering a good three feet over her head. Her screams of surprise and frustration came muffled through the rock, and Sokka couldn't help the grin on his face.

"I doubt that," Toph growled.

"I wouldn't go quite that far, little girl." Sokka gulped, looking to where Ty Lee was supposed to be pinned to the ground, but finding her folded beside the rock restraints and putting her contorted limbs back into place. "You can see people on the ground..." She leapt into a somersault, toward one of the lamp-posts. "...But you're useless when they're in the air!"

Aang twirled his staff for a huge gust as Sokka watched her swing from the post back toward them, straightening into the wind with her toes pointed, slicing through the current like a dolphin through choppy waves, her foot catching him in the forehead. He staggered back, just in time to miss a jab to his shoulder.

Sokka bit his lip, growling. _Why us?_

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Zuko ducked a stream of bright blue flames, nearly putting his face in the tea tray to avoid it. Azula's shouts of frustration rose above the hissing of a water stream meeting her next blast, and he had just enough sense to hold his breath until the steam dispersed. When he dared to look up again, the Water Tribe girl had pulled a handful of ice shards from the skin at her belt, hurling them under Azula's attacks.

But of course, Zuko knew his sister wouldn't stand for getting scratched in the face by a mere peasant. A redirected fireblast took care of them nicely, singeing the girl's hair in the process.

He looked around, his stomach tying itself into a sick knot as he watched the women leap over tables and send blasts of ice and fire at each other while the shop patrons did their best to stay out of the way. His sister was likely going to end up killing someone here in her quest to get to him. And it was going to be his fault for not doing something, anything to at least defend the shop patrons. And yet... She wasn't Jet. There was no way in Heaven or Hell that he could fight her without Firebending.

Without outing himself and his uncle, and getting them both thrown out of the last refuge they possibly could've had.

The girl herself was putting up a valiant effort, backing herself into the left of the shop, within two arms' reach of six tables along the wall. He watched as she swept a graceful arm down the length of the aisle, water following the motion. Right out the spouts of the teapots, still steaming. Her hands did that crazy twisting thing that he remembered so well from the Oasis at the Northern Siege, flinging the stream of scalding hot water directly for Azula's face with all the speed and force of lightning itself.

He never thought that shrill scream would be music to the ears someday.

And yet, it was short-lived as Azula recovered from the burn, face a reddened mask of fury. Her arms circled in that move he knew all too well. The move he'd watched Iroh demonstrate on that cliff, bandaged shoulder be damned, while the Water Tribe girl gathered herself an ice shield. One which he knew would not do a damn blasted thing against what was about to hit her.

He barely felt his legs move as he dashed between them, just in time for Azula to unleash crackling blue death at them both. His arm flung out, fingertips catching the head of the lightning bolt, his other hand guiding the energy down through his stomach and up the other arm. He could feel it surging through him, tightening his muscles with the most godawful stinging and that horrid pins-and-needles sensation that felt like he'd slept on his hands wrong. But instead of aiming his hand for the roof, he pointed those now deadly fingers right back at his sister, the giant spark leaping right from the tips toward her.

She ducked, but not before he caught the look of utter disbelief on her face. She wore it even as she looked up at him again, too stunned to wipe it and save her pride. "What in the name of Heaven was _that!_"

He fought the urge to grin, not wanting the cockiness to get too contagious. "Your match, Azula." He flicked his eyes to the equally flabbergasted Water Tribe girl. "You. _Run_."

"But--"

"I said _run!_ Get out of here. _Now!_"

She argued no more, her footsteps pounding as she raced from the shop.

Azula growled. "You're a disgrace."

He didn't bother dignifying her with a response. Not a verbal one, at any rate, deciding a pair of flame daggers would be much more effective than words. He knew he'd just done it. An irreversible act that sealed his and his uncle's fates as outcasts to the entire world. There was no place to hide anymore. Should he survive this battle, the Dai Li would likely haul them both off to be executed. But at the moment, he didn't care.

He didn't have a choice.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"You've got to be kidding me."

Long Feng glanced up from the report, features hardened. "Fire Nation? In _my_ city?"

Joo Dee bowed, though her legs visibly shook. "It seems more likely than we thought."

He scowled, staring back at the fire. "They're after the Avatar. Wherever he goes, they follow. At this rate, he'll be leading the Fire Lord himself straight to my doorstep."

"But he is--"

"I know what he is, Joo Dee. And we don't need him in this city, as he'll cause nothing but trouble. A hundred years have passed without the Fire Nation able to topple us. Fire Lord Ozai will pass. His heir will pass. His heir's heir will pass, and Ba Sing Se will be known as the City That Never Fell. Because unlike Omashu, it's not just the walls that protect us, but the order within them. There is a delicate balance that must be kept here. I will not let anyone, not even the Avatar himself, weaken it."

"Then..."

"Arrest them all," he growled. "The Avatar, his companions, the Fire Nation intruders... Everyone."

"And what then?"

"I will deal with them... _Personally_."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	4. Shattered

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 4: Shattered

* * *

Fighting his sister was hard enough when he didn't have to worry about getting someone else caught in the crossfire. Fighting her in close quarters among innocent bystanders made him wonder what on earth he'd been drinking, and where he might find more. She continued to throw lightning bolts in a vain attempt to hit him, only to have them redirected and thrown back in her face with his signature pinpoint accuracy. By now, he'd ceased to care whether Iroh was watching, especially as he backflipped onto a table to avoid a blue fireblast. 

"You never learn, do you?" she growled, throwing a whip of flames at his feet. "You were always a traitor. That's why you were banished in the first place!"

Zuko leapt off the table to avoid it, tipping it over with a kick to shield himself as she readied another attack. He had to take this fight outside if he was going to keep the shop patrons alive, and that was getting increasingly difficult with the way she was trying to corral him. He glanced across the shop at the door leading to the street, narrowly avoiding a fire whip. If he could lead her in the right direction...

He started to zig-zag across the room, jumping over and ducking under tables, dodging and redirecting lightning blasts as fast as she threw them, but refraining from any attacks of his own. There was no need for more fire to be thrown around a room full of innocent people. He looked up long enough to spot Iroh in the doorway of the kitchen, giving him a meaningful glance that he hoped would make it clear.

_This one's mine_.

Iroh's answering look was unreadable.

Not that Zuko had a whole lot of time to think about it before he spun out the door and into the dusty street, dodging a whip of blue fire. Without any further hesitation, he reached out to grab the whip itself, giving it a firm pull and trying not to enjoy the look on Azula's face as she came tumbling toward him. Her moment of imbalance and surprise was long enough for him to launch a fireblast squarely at her.

Azula reeled, letting go of the whip to clutch at her shoulder as the flames dispersed, and looked up at him with a frustrated growl. She knew it as well as he did: this would not be the cakewalk it was a few weeks go.

He drew back for a larger fireblast, noting her mid-defensive stance. But instead of following through, he aimed it for the ground, letting the flames spread just above the earth toward her feet. She leapt up in surprise to avoid it, and he took full advantage for her confusion with a well-placed smaller blast. She narrowly avoided it, wincing as it singed the ends of her bangs and landing next to a lamp-post.

He smiled to himself, despite having missed, because it was enough to visibly rattle her. He'd never understood it before, what his uncle said about fighting being like a dance. Only now that he saw the technique in practice -- by his own hand, no less -- did he finally get what he'd been doing wrong all these years.

_Break her rhythm. She can't stay on a beat that's always changing._

She started to circle her arms again for a lightning attack, and he once again took the stance to receive it. But instead of throwing it back at her, he aimed his exit hand for the top of the lamp-post next to her.

The metal lamp-post.

He watched with something akin to pleasure as blue sparks crackled down the length of the pole, while she just grinned and readied another attack. Only to be literally shocked off her feet with a loud _snap!_ as the lightning met the ground next to her. She screamed, rolling as she hit the ground, coming to a stop on her stomach. He bended a thick fire-whip into his hand, lashing at her while she tried to raise herself on shaking limbs.

She rolled to the side, pulling herself up to a crouch. "Hitting someone while they're down, Zuko? Have you abandoned your honor as well as your nation?"

He noted the low stance, tensing his legs in anticipation. "I can't abandon what I never had."

His hips swung in a ground-kissing sweep, fire shooting from his sole in a wide arc toward his siister's crouched form. He loosed the whip hardly a moment later, watching her rise to her feet just as he expected her to. Directly in the path of the hurtling flames.

Which she caught in her own hands, twirling and throwing them right back in his face.

He ducked, letting them singe the top of his head, but taking all his willpower not to wince and lose sight of her. Not for a moment.

She grinned, stretching her arms out in that all too familiar stance. "Two can play this game, you know. Let's see who's better at it."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

This, Aang suspected, was what Sokka meant that time when he referred to Ty Lee as the Pink Avenger.

He twisted and dodged in ways he was sure human spines were not supposed to move in order to avoid her jabbing fingers, as he quite liked having the use of his arms and legs. She stuck to the lightposts and rooftops, leaving a very frustrated Toph and an even more trapped Sokka on the ground to watch while she and Aang duelled for a chance to actually land a blow on one another.

The thought of moving the battle somewhere else occurred to him, but he knew he couldn't risk it when the scary one with the daggers was still conscious, though trapped behind a wall of solid rock. While he knew Toph was more than capable of taking care of herself, he didn't like the idea of leaving her and Sokka by themselves.

He closed his glider, twirling it for a jet stream of biting current, one that made her shield her face with her arm in mid jump from flying dust. If he could just get her to fall so that she'd be at Toph's mercy...

He leapt into a twisting kick, landing on all fours and sending a surface blast of wind along the rooftop. Ty Lee dodged admirably, leaping over it to land behind him. He turned to follow her, narrowly avoiding a jab to the neck. "Sorry, but I _don't_ have time for this!"

She chuckled, spinning into a sweep at his ankles. "Funny, little guy. I sure don't see you running."

It was his turn to leap away, jumping across the decorative brick platforms along the roof's edge. "'Cause I'm not gonna leave my friends alone!"

"My, how sweet." They both turned, watching as a hand grabbed the roof's edge from below, straining to pull up until the other girl's eyes peered over the top, slowly hoisting herself onto the roof to join them. She tucked the leather strap and dagger back into her cloak, glaring. "I think I'll just throw up right here."

Aang stepped back, taking stock of any advantages he could possibly pull from this as they both grinned at him, closing in from either direction. He had no water, and air, as good as he was at it, was proving to be not nearly so effective once they knew what to expect. And while Toph had taught him some useful moves, they weren't on the ground anymore...

_Or are we? Earth Kingdom...the houses are made of clay. From the ground..._

He refrained from grinning, doing his best to still look nervous as his toes twitched across the flat shale tiles. All he had to do was get them in the right place... Center of the roof. Perfect.

He stomped forward, shoving a fist at the ground. The tiles flew up from all around them just he leapt into a spin, landing and aiming them for the two very surprised assailants. They backed away from the now rather painful beating, toward the edge of the roof, trying to shield their faces at least with crossed arms and hunched shoulders. Until one by one they both disappeared over the edge with surprised shrieks.

He ran to see after them, shouting for Toph's attention. "Now, Toph! Right in front of you!"

She twisted her feet, sending a travelling crack through the ground toward the exact spot they were about to hit, stomping her other foot in front of her and crooking her thumbs in precise form. All poised for the perfect strike. The ground began to heave ready to catch them both.

Until the unmistakeable sound of flying rocks made him gasp, Toph's face melting into a mask of startled horror as her arms wrenched painfully in back of her. The two girls hit the ground, Ty Lee in a crouch and catching her partner to break her fall, just as another set of those signature rock shackles flew over their heads. They both took off running into the shadows at full tilt.

He heard it behind him a moment later, turning to face what he knew was coming, only to feel the cold stone clamp around his wrists from the side.

_Dammit!_

"What are you doing!" he shouted. "They're Fire Nation! And they're getting away!"

"Orders," came the cold voice, followed by the advancing officer. "All of you are under arrest by the order of Long Feng. You are coming with us."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

By all accounts, things were not going well. The one drop Zuko thought he might've had on the Fire Nation's Golden Girl turned out to be a non-issue, as she was apparently as good at catching on as he was. The singes at the edge of his hair and clothes told the story quite nicely. She was starting to expect his unexpected, to adapt to the new rhythm. He knew he had to change beat again, but to _what_...

He spun to avoid a blue fire whip, kicking the remnants of a decorative steel screen in front of him to shield the blast that followed it. There were a couple of options he was considering, but both of them were a fool's move and he knew it. Techniques Iroh had not completely trained him on yet, since it wasn't like they could Firebend worth a damn with the Dai Li breathing down the city's collective neck.

_You don't need to change the dance. Just the beat_...

He looked up as she leapt onto the other lamp-post to avoid one of his fireblasts, proverbial gears turning. Things his uncle had told him during training, about how a direct attack is not always best... Yet he couldn't generate lightning himself, and he dared not attenpt it and fail in such close quarters. Yet, the post was metal. There had to be...

He readied a fire whip, sending it along the ground toward the pole. She cocked an eyebrow at him as through he'd grown a tail, watching the stream of flames wrap the base of her perch. He counted, focusing on her hands as they clutched the metal, waiting for the inevitable. He didn't have to wait long. Her fingers twitched for a moment, the shock barely registering on her face before she let go with a shriek, falling to the ground and clasping her burned palms together.

"You little _bastard!_"

He allowed himself half a smirk at least, flicking the whip back to the ground. "I've had some wonderful teachers."

She jumped back, spreading her arms in stance and hurling a rather large fireblast to his right. He dodged easily enough, despite a few fresh singes on his hair and clothes and his skin prickling uncomfortably in its wake. The dust and ash cleared as he looked up, watching her just stare at him with an expression that looked as pleased as it could without smiling. He couldn't help letting confusion get the best of him for a moment. "You missed. What are you so happy about?"

No answer, save for her lips finally breaking into a grin.

And then he heard it. The gasps and shouts from the small audience that had gathered around, the scrambling of their footsteps as they started to clear away down the street. The distinct roaring crackle that a Firebender of any skill level would know _anywhere_. Felt it, the searing heat at his back that his hands were so well acquainted with. Smelled it, the stench of burning wood and cloth. He turned around, icy dread turning his stomach to stone.

The facade of the shop was burning.

Crumbling down in sparks and showers, smoke rising in steadily growing plumes. He cursed inwardly, shielding himself from flying red-hot embers and avoiding more surgical fireblasts from Azula's hands. He couldn't even look up for all the heat, relying on his feeble ability to feel the ground with his toes and the condition above by the cracking of the wood, narrowly dodging the burning pieces as they fell.

Until he felt it. The long metal rod that held up the awning, heavy and hot, crashing into his back and knocking him to the ground. Face first, scraping against the rock. Feeling warm, sticky fluid slide down his cheek and that familiar coppery taste on his lips. The world spun despite him not being able to see it for a minute, and blurry as though he were looking through a dusty window when he finally dould.

She grinned down at him, arms twirling in that motion the he knew so well by now, and on reflex he tried to pull his arms up to redirect what he knew was coming. But they couldn't quite cooperate while pinned by a piece of metal that may or may not have not broken his back. His still fuzzy mind barely managed to process the thought that his sister was about to turn him into a human lightning rod, and there was ansolutely nothing he could do about it.

A loud _splash!_ met his ears, a sound that shook him from that dense fog of impact in an instant. Perhaps because it was such an alien sound to be hearing in a dry climate like this, but whatever the reason, his head snapped up immediately, enough to meet the cool spray of water.

Azula shrieked, drenched from head to foot, clothes heavy and hair hanging in her face, normally dagger-stiff topknot lying flat against her head. She backed up, turning around with a feral snarl. "Who would _dare_...?"

He knew that blue dress and those blazing eyes anywhere.

_Of all the stupid, careless_... "What are you doing! I told you to--"

"Shut up!" she yelled, flinging a wave from the nearby cistern to quench the blaze at the shop, further soaking Azula in her process. "It's my turn, now." Her eyes flicked back to his sister, growling under her breath. "You _really_ want to try that again?"

Azula sucked in a breath, the water on her skin evaporating into a steam cloud as she grinned. "Actually, yes I do." Her arms waved again, only to bestopped dead as a thick stream encased them in solid shackles of ice. "That was rhetorical, y'know."

Zuko watched them both, unable to help feeling just a little out of sorts at seeing a Waterbender completely overpower his sister. Though he couldn't find himself complaining much at the moment.

She growled, bringing her arms up to her face to melt the ice with a breath, hands shaking and pale from the cold as she deflected the other girl's barrage of water whips with deadly accurate fireblasts, making steam clouds puff and dissipate between them. "You little _bitch_. You've caused me trouble for the last time."

He strained underneath the metal, no longer dizzy and reasonably sure nothing had been broken. His momentary ally flung an extra whip at one end of the pole, knocking it away to allow him to get to his feet. But no sooner did he then the sounds of flying rocks reached his ears. One he'd only heard once, but that was enough to know what it meant.

_Shit!_

The two girls looked up from their battle, Azula standing confused for a moment before thinking better of the situation and running, while the Water Tribe girl spun to face the shadows, deflecting a second shot with a well-placed ice blast and backing up toward the shop's burned-out storefront toward him. As the dark figures advanced on her.

They didn't speak. Nor did they need to. He growled low in his throat as she gathered some water from the cistern into an ice shield for them both as they backed up past it. _Wonderful. Cornered like pigeonrats._

"When we get to the shop door? Run," she commanded softly after a pause.

"What? Are you--"

"I said _run_." Her teeth were bared, the look of them sending a shudder down his back as he knew she meant business. "Don't argue with me. Just do it."

He didn't like her tone as they backed over the step to the front deck, the shield already sporting some cracks in it. "You're out of your mind. There's no way you can--"

"I'll be fine. I know what I'm doing, okay?"

"You have any idea who they are?"

"Plenty," she replied as they made it to the threshold. "Now do as I say!" She didn't wait for his next objection, using one hand and an ice whip to shove him through the gutted doorway before charging them. The sound of the ice shattering under the onslaught of rocks followed, and he peered up long enough to see them encase her wrists in granite, dragging her away despite her struggles and shouts.

It was enough. Cursing a proverbial bue streak in his head, words he'd never even heard his own father say, he slunk through the burned out shell of the building to the back exit, ducking into an alley to wait for the officers to move on, knowing they had to be out of the way before he could even chance escape.

And at the same time, there was no denying the sick feeling in his gut as the sight of the Dai Li officers dragging that girl away replayed itself for him. She'd told him to get out. Had charged them as a diversion so he could get away. Had sacrificed her freedom to spare him the sword, despite all the times he'd tried to condemn her with his own. She knew what was going to happen. He knew she knew. And he hated it.

Not for the first time did he wish his sense of honor had the wisdom to _shut up_ at times like these.

_Honor? He saved your life in a blizzard, and you're still trying to capture him. You have any idea what the word even means?_

...Why did he need to hear this now? He felt scared and confused and ashamed enough without the voice of some crazy Waterbender shouting things in his head that he really didn't want to think about. He knew what the hell honor meant. It was... Well it was about...

Silence. Try as he might, his mind could not fashion an answer to that one. Not one that felt right, at any rate. Not one that felt like he wasn't simply repeating the rhetoric he'd been fed at home. Did honor mean stealing and robbing to stay alive? Did it mean hurting people to whom he owed his life? Did it mean regarding even those who offered aid to him "the enemy?"

He swallowed, not liking the answer in his heart one bit. That was not the way things were supposed to go. He was supposed to capture that child and bring him back to his father. And they were supposed to crown him Prince once again, and possibly hold a Fire Festival in celebration. He'd been promised this.

_If you sincerely believe that, I know some long lost Air Nomads who would love to kick your butt at Pai Sho._

By Azula, he remembered. Azula had promised him the Sun, Moon, and Sozen's Comet. And he remembered how well she'd delivered on that one. How well she'd managed to sucker him into turning against every last shred of his common sense just by telling him what he wanted to hear. To pit him against Iroh, of all people. Against the only member of his family still around who actually cared whether he lived or died. There were few times in his life that he'd felt so completely ashamed, so utterly deserving of a slap across the face and a good kick to the ribs for being an utter fool.

_'Cause you're too busy letting your whole crazy nation tell you what to do with your life..._

And it was all lies. The quest for the Avatar, something he knew he would never have taken up for the sheer insanity of it had he not been told it was his ticket back to the palace. Something which he knew was not the case anymore, and was fairly positive it never had been.

There was no chance of going home. It hurt him to even think about it, worse than any attack his sister had ever thrown at him. That the tower of hope that had kept him standing these last three years was built on a lake of quicksand. And only now did he realize how far he'd been sinking. How much of his life he'd let them, the people he was supposed to be able to trust above all others, ruin. How he'd valued their opinion of him over his uncle's.

His uncle. The first person since his mother to make him feel like family wasn't an illusion. Who had put his own safety -- and sanity -- on the line for _him_. Who had sacrificed his freedom and willingly chosen banishment right along with him. Who had pulled more strings than a master puppeteer to ensure their safety in this city.

_Safety my ass_. He knew it, as he'd known ever since the moment he severed his topknot and the ties to his homeland. No matter how well-meaning Iroh had been to keep him going, he knew he'd only been poking wet ashes. There was no ember left. His fate had been sealed with the failure at the Northern Siege, though in his heart he'd accepted long before then that his quest was nothing but the denial of a homesick madman.

His honor was gone. His throne was gone. He was a traitor, branded as such three years ago. Even if he had completed his quest, there was no way the country would take back a Prince who'd walked out on an Agni Kai. Against the Fire Lord, no less.

And now, they had no chance of staying in Ba Sing Se any longer. Not when he'd just demonstrated in front of a few hundred witnesses that he was a highly trained Firebender. He had to find his uncle and not waste his chance to get out while it was still possible. There was no other alternative, unless Iroh knew of a Mindbending discipline or something.

There was nowhere left to go. No place was safe, as long as he was still a traitor and the world still at war. He wanted to stop running. He wanted to stop hiding. He wanted his old life back, and there was no way in Hell that was ever going to happen. He was on the run not just from the Fire Nation, but from the world until this war ended. And that didn't look like a possibility in this lifetime.

And he knew what Iroh would be telling him the moment he found him. Don't give up. Don't give in to despair, as long as you have some fight left in you. And then would come the wonder at how Iroh, of all people, could say such a thing with the conviction he did. A man who had lost his country, his throne, and his only son, yet still had the hope to keep on going. He had a secret somewhere. One that Zuko could certainly use at the moment.

He pulled the dagger out of his cloak, staring at the inscription as if it were a divining pool. There had to be a way out of this mess. There had to be a way to get what he wanted, Avatar or no Avatar.

_No matter how things may seem to change, never forget who you are._

He didn't know why those words decided to echo in his mind again. Right at this moment, when things seemed so dark. When he had no idea what he was supposed to do, where to go, or how to get there. Even after all this time, he never got what his mother meant by those words.

Perhaps, he supposed, because he'd never had a reason to heed them as well as he did at the moment. She had given him the answer to a question he would not ask himself until years later.

_My name is Zuko. Son of Princess Ursa and Fire Lord Ozai. Prince of the Fire Nation and heir to the throne._

While that whole night still felt like a bad campfire tale he'd never heard the end of, those words in particular always stood out clearly when everything else faded. Maybe because they were her last. Maybe because he knew, even then, that she was driving at something he would only understand when the time came.

That time was _now_.

The footsteps were starting to fade, the soldiers' voices with them as they moved off. He risked a heave to his feet, peering around the corner into the crowd that had come to such a standstill. They couldn't see him, he was sure as he turned and headed down the small back street, disappearing into the night.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"Just what in the name of Fenghuang were you _thinking_, Mai? She told us not to attack the Avatar! She's gonna--"

"I don't care what the hell she said. He was right there. I wasn't going to sit there and tear off my fingernails until he decided to move." She ducked behind a couple of empty barrels, Ty Lee beside her as the place was starting to crawl with enough uniforms to make even them twitchy.

"But...her orders...You know how she is... Mai, if she finds out--"

"I don't care, okay? She can hurl all the fire and lightning she wants, I just don't _care_ anymore. I'm sick of her orders, 'cause they don't make any goddamn sense! No, don't attack the Avatar. Just tail him so you can tell me where he is when we have no way to actually send word to each other in time!" She growled, tucking the retrieved blades into her garment.

"She's our friend, Mai."

"She is? Then why are we sent off to do all the legwork? Why does she get to go after all the big fish while we're left with the slim pickings? She doesn't treat us like friends. We're her servants. We always have been. And to be honest, I've had enough."

Ty Lee winced at the thought, remembering having to crawl through the slurry and failing anyway. "What'll you do? If she tries to kill you, I mean. And trust me, she's gonna find out and you're gonna be toast..."

"Simple," Mai quipped. "I'll kick her ass."

"But she's a--"

"Yeah, a Bender. I know. Ask me if I care. I'd rather get killed fighting her than serving her."

"...What about me?"

Mai looked at her. "What about you?"

"What...What will I do if you...?"

The look on Mai's face turned to one of mild bewilderment, as though she'd been asked a question she didn't quite know how to answer. But that only lasted a moment, her Pai Sho face returning at full strength. "You do what you want. I can't tell you that. Go on and stay with her and save your skin if you like. Just stay the hell out of my way."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

The footfalls had faded into stunned silence as Iroh carefully picked his way through the ruins of the shop front, pushing blackened wood panelling out of his way and stepping carefully to avoid the broken glass. He knew he should've expected it sooner later out of a city such as Ba Sing Se. A city which had defeated him once before, and was about to so again.

_Even the thickest walls will have cracks in the masonry. Where armies can't go, spies will_.

The words made him wince inside, more for remembering who had spoken them than how right they were. But no. He could not dwell on the past when the future wasn't looking very good at the moment.

The sound of crunching glass made him turn on an arrowpoint, stance ready, breath taken as creaking wood followed it. Footfall. But lighter and more careful, not at all the heavy, we-own-the-place steps of the Dai Li when they wished to be heard. His eyes narrowed in the direction they came from, able to discern a lone figure coming through the shadows.

He knew that silhouette anywhere.

"Are you all right?"

"Fine," Zuko murmured. "Get ready to leave."

"I was going to find you to do just that. We mustn't stay here another minute if we can--"

"You go on ahead, Uncle. I'll catch up. I have something here I need to take care of first."

Iroh's brow arched, confused by the boy's tone. It wasn't the blazing conviction he normally used when he spoke about his quest, but a cold, quiet determination. The likes of which he'd never imagined hearing out of that voice. "What are you going to do?"

Zuko looked up finally, the sparse moonlight glinting in his eyes like chips of diamond. "The right thing."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	5. Breakout

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 5: Breakout

* * *

Unlike the Dai Li themselves, there were few things a Ba Sing Se prison guard really needed to worry about as long as the captives stayed in their cells. Metal cells, he reminded himself, as no Bender of any element could manipulate such material. There was no way any prisoner would be going anywhere without a key.

Of course, so little stress had the downside of making the job boring as hell. Overseeing the cell block was nothing to regale the wife about. Most of the time, the prisoners slept. Or read, if they could. Or scrawled various profanities on the walls of their cubicles. He didn't care as long as nobody tried to pick the locks.

And so here he found himself, about halfway through his shift and watching a lone prisoner attempt to rip his toenails off with his teeth. No real reason, just to see if he could. While most of the time the prisoners were nothing to acknowledge, they occasionally did things that amused him greatly.

The sound of footfall in the hallway made him look up, putting his chair forward as the officer entered the cell block and trying to look as though he hadn't been daydreaming. "Good Evening, Sir. How can I help you?"

He didn't speak, which wasn't all that alarming. The Dai Li were not known as men of words. Instead, he answered by holding out his hand, presenting the guard with a piece of official parchment. He took it, unrolling the scroll to read it. His brow arched in suspicion.

"Release form for the Avatar?"

The officer nodded.

He looked back at the form, eyes narrowed. _There was a mistake in the arrest. These prisoners are to be released with utmost haste, and our sincerest apologies._ Long Feng's familiar signature and seal graced the bottom, though he had rarely seen the man authorize a release form for anyone. Though he supposed the Avatar was one of those special cases that even the de facto ruler of Ba Sing Se dared not tangle with.

"Follow me," he said, rolling up the scroll and giving it back to the officer as he turned into the cell block. "I'm sure the Avatar will be happy with the news.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Of all the situations Sokka had endured since deciding to travel with Aang, none were quite so hateful as this one. His arm and leg were starting to regain some movement; not that he could demonstrate such with the way they were all chained up, held fast against the wall with heavy iron restraints.

"I don't get it!" Toph growled, trying in vain to twist her arm free. "They were Fire Nation, and they attacked us _first!_ Why are we the ones sitting in the slammer?"

"Because this city is run by an arrogant small-minded moron and his creepy flunkies who don't really give a damn what's going on outside the city walls as long as the citizens don't find out about it," Sokka griped. "And we're all quite capable of publicly tearing the robes off his little operation and turning the city against him if we really wanted to. I don't know about you all, but that's sounding like a mighty good idea right now."

"Maybe," Katara murmured. "But what good would it do for the _people_ to know? All you'll have is chaos and panic when there's no need, and it won't get us any closer to taking advantage of that eclipse. Who needs to know is the Earth King, not the citizens."

"At this point, I'm not even sure the Earth King exists," Sokka growled. "Feng controls everything. What the hell would the Earth Kingdom need a king for when they already have a dictator?"

"But we don't know for sure," Aang reminded them. "And until we do, the Earth King _is_ our last hope."

"See this?" Sokka said, sucking in deeply and exhaling hard. "This is me, not holding my breath."

"Pipe down and quit your whining," the rough voice from the shadows commanded. "You'll be out of here soon enough."

Sokka's head snapped up, along with everyone else's, to meet the severe face of their cell block guard. It took him a minute to process the words, his eyes narrowed. "Say _what?_"

"I've been informed that your arrest was a mistake. According to the release form, you're free to go."

Aang's jaw hit his collar before he picked it back up again. "If you're joking with us, it's not funny."

"Do I look like a joker?" The guard stepped aside as he unlocked the cell, letting the officer behind him through.

Sokka's brow furrowed as he approached, uniform not quite the right fit and a large bandanna covering one side of his face. The hat obscured most of it, save for his mouth and the other eye. He took the offered key from the guard, coming up to Aang first and unlocking his shackles from the wall rings but leaving them around his wrists, coming around to each of them and doing the same. Cold, calculated, and silent as the walls themselves. Sokka opened his mouth to ask just what in hell was going on as the officer came to free him, but one look from the man was enough to close it for him. No words left his lips, but he could almost feel them behind that look.

_If you want to get out of here alive, shut up._

He swallowed thickly, his world-famous instincts telling him it was probably best to take the unspoken advice. Especially since his wrists were still bound and the one leg Ty Lee had disabled was still a bit unsteady. They were all led single file as the guard closed up their cell and the block behind them.

The officer carried Momo carefully under his arm, ignoring the lemur's trills and squirming. Sokka marched right behind him, down the seemingly endless dank passages, turning and and hoping to whatever major deities might be listening that their...he didn't want to say "rescuer" just yet...was going the right way. The sound of crackling torches was maddening, leaving every nerve on edge the further they went. He felt a nudge at his ankle, and leaned back as Toph raised on tiptoe to whisper to him.

"His steps are familiar."

He raised an eyebrow, looking at the man's back more closely for a minute. "We know him?"

"I can't say for sure. Just that his steps aren't new to me."

The officer whirled to stare them both down, single eye blazing.

_What part of 'shut up' do you have trouble with?_

Sokka shivered, just the tiniest bit spooked at being able to read that expression as clearly as if he'd been spoken to. People, in his experience, just shouldn't be able to _do_ that. Except for the Avatar, because Aang was special like that.

He turned around again, leading them onward.

It wasn't all that long before the hall opened into a large carved room, lit by only two torches, housing a small desk and little else. At the desk sat another Dai Li officer, who looked up as they entered with an even more severe face than the guard.

"Why are the new prisoners out of their cells? We had orders that they were to be kept on constant watch."

The one leading them bowed, presenting the note. "We have new orders, Sir. Direct from Master Feng himself."

Something in Sokka's chest clenched. Hard. He knew that voice. A nagging sensation, like his memory had a pebble in its shoe and try as he might he couldn't get it out.

The other officer took the note, reading it over what looked like several times. "This looks like Master Feng's hand. But the request of a prisoner's release only hours after apprehension..."

"He is the Avatar. I'm sure Master Feng has his reasons."

"Perhaps," the checkpoint officer muttered, pausing for a long moment before bowing his head. "It's best not to question any order bearing his name."

Sokka gulped, hardly believing his ears as they were waved on into the next corridor with nary more than a glance.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

The warm night air pressed around Katara's face as they finally exited the prison, relieving the shivers of being stuck underground for all that time. The streets were empty in the late morning as their officer unlocked the shackles from their wrists, being charged with the duty of escorting them to their Upper Ring house.

Or so the Dai Li thought. As soon as they were reasonably out of earshot of the prison gate, she whirled on the cowled man. "Just what the holy flying hell are you--!"

He clapped a hand over her mouth, growling. "Shut up, or I'll to do it for you. Do you _want_ to get us all killed?"

Sokka marched up to him, free arms ready to take a swing. "You get your hands away from my sister before I cut them off!"

The man easily blocked it, spin-kicking him into the wall. "Shut up, all of you! We're not safe yet. The more noise you make, the more danger we're in." He released Katara, glaring at all of them. "Now follow me and _don't say a word_."

"Why should we?" Sokka groaned, rubbing the back of his head. "Just who the hell are you, anyway?"

Toph turned toward him. "You mean you can't tell?"

He flailed a bit, to his credit trying not to shout. "He's got half his face covered!"

Katara watched them all argue, the initial shock at such a foolish act bleeding off into a reeling confusion. Of all the people to be rescued by, she never expected... It felt like one of those pranks Sokka used to play on her when they were children. There had to be a punchline somewhere. She stepped up behind the officer, taking a deep breath and resting a hand on his shoulder.

"Zuko...? What in God's name are you doing?"

Sokka's jaw would've hit the floor were it not attached to his face. "_Him?_"

Aang and Momo stared after him, just as dumbfounded, while Toph simply glared at them. "You people and your _eyes_, I swear!"

The officer snapped over his shoulder at her. "I'm sure you can figure it out if you try hard enough. Now shut up and follow me."

Sokka shook his head, waving his hand away. "Oh no, pal. If you think we're going _anywhere_ with you--"

"Look," he growled, "I didn't free you all just so the Dai Li can recapture us while we stand around here arguing. I'll explain myself later. Right now we don't have time for this. We need to get out of this city before the rocks start flying."

Aang looked back toward the prison, swallowing. "He's right, Sokka. We have to get going. It's not safe."

Toph nodded. "We'll kick his ass later if we need to."

Sokka opened and closed his mouth a few times, grasping for a response before finally thinking better of it. Likely because Toph had already started pulling him after them.

Katara followed close, not quite beside him, shoulders hunched and arms wrapped over her chest, chilled despite the dry night air. She didn't dare look up at him, not knowing what to think. He said he would explain later, but she doubted if anything would make the situation less confusing. Why he, of all people, would come to their aid when it was an obvious danger to both himself and his uncle were he to be caught. Was his quest for the Avatar really that important? Or was he just _that stupid?_

She risked a glance up at him. He looked determined, recognizeable under the Dai Li garb now that she knew better. As though there was nothing else to stand in his way now. Yet it wasn't his usual threatening look; or if it was, she got the impression such sentiments weren't directed at them.

"Zuko?"

"What did I tell you?" He hissed, without looking at her.

She ignored it, the curiosity too much for her. "This is the second time you've saved me. From what I know of the Fire Nation, that's hardly typical. What's going on?"

He paused, his face hardening. "Are all of the Southern Water Tribe such geniuses, or are you just special?"

She stared, slack-jawed for a minute as he drifted further ahead, quite obviously in no mood to talk.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Stupidity, Zuko decided, was an amazing character trait; it amazed him how the Avatar and his companions could be such brain-damaged idiots, yet manage to defy an entire nation of soldiers more than once and still be alive. He'd finally succeeded in getting them all to keep silent as he led them through the maze of Middle Ring streets, attempting to remember where the nearest exit to the Lower Ring was. The trains weren't running at this time of night, which meant they needed to go on foot and do so quickly. The entire city would be crawling with officers once the jailbreak was found out, he knew, and that would make escape impossible.

He'd banked on this. Had even planned the timing to leave them ample time before dawn to get the hell out of the city. What he hadn't banked on was dealing with such thick-headed rescuees. It didn't quite feel like the Northern Siege all over again; he knew what to do, and that he couldn't waste any time doing it. The problem was getting his charges to realize that.

They rounded a corner, footsteps silent along the ground, backs pressed to the wall as he lead them cautiously forward. The streets themselves were empty, wisely having cleared out before curfew. Especially this close to the prison. He peered around the second corner, recognizing the gilded lamp-posts that told him the entrance was close. He looked back, signaling them to follow.

And not ten steps later, he stopped short. Listening.

There it was again. A faint rustle in the shadows. Cloth and shoes scraping on cobblestone and the barest whisper of a displaced breeze. He held his breath, squinting into the inky darkness ahead to see who their uninvited guest was. He could discern a faint figure there, small and slight underneath long robes, heading toward them.

He crouched, taking a defensive stance and no chances.

"Do I look that dangerous?"

His eyes narrowed, the voice sounding familiar, but not in a way that made him uneasy. Yet he still maintained his caution, remembering his cover. "At this time of night, yes. It's far past curfew."

"Then dare I ask what you're doing out here?"

He somehow managed to keep his voice even. "Leading these charges t--"

"--To safety after breaking them from prison, I know."

His eyes snapped wide, stance relaxing in complete shock. "How did you--"

She stepped forward, into the cone of flickering light from the streetlamp as she let the hood of her cloak fall back. "Just a hunch."

He gasped, the word barely a whisper on his lips. "_You?_"

She nodded, signaling for him. "Yes. Now I believe you have a city to escape, and not a whole lot of time to do it in." She motioned for him to follow her, rounding a corner to their right. Around the back of a closed dress shop and into an alley that reeked of rotting tea leaves. He tailed after her, the rest of them in tow, his voice a harsh whisper.

"Jin, what the hell are you _doing?_ How did you--"

"I'll explain later. Right now, I need to get you all out of here before the Dai Li catch you. You'll never make it to the outer gate before they figure out what just went down, and the Lower Ring is always crawling with them at night. I know a better way out." She turned down the alley a few steps, while he just stared after her dumbfounded.

"Well?" she asked. "You want to get to safety or not?"

Zuko traded glances with his charges, all equally confused, before following her with shaky steps. "Where are you taking us?"

"I told you. A better way out. Now be quiet and follow me."

Zuko opened his mouth to protest further, but thought better of it. This was not happening. It couldn't be happening. It felt too much like the psychotic dreams he'd been having lately, the ones that always made him wake up more exhausted than when he went to bed. As though this wasn't happening to him, but was part of a play he was watching.

The thought that she was bait from the Dai Li crossed his mind, with more than reasonable doubt. She obviously knew things; it would have made more sense for her to ambush him when he was alone rather than leading three rather powerful benders and a competent fighter. She certainly didn't seem like the utterly stupid type. But at this point, he wasn't quite ready to drop his guard entirely.

The aforementioned fighter leaned in for a moment from behind him. "You have any idea what she's on about?"

"None at all," he replied. "Stay wary."

She took them around another corner, feeling with her hands along the wall. "The entrance is here, I just need to find it again." Zuko watched her, fascinated as she kicked off her shoes and slid her feet along the ground, toes probing the cracks in the cobblestone, features narrowed in concentration. "Little more to the left...riiiiight..._here_." She pressed the cobble in with her foot, standing back from the wall as a section of it turned sideways with a growl of stone against stone.

A yawning hall of darkness beckoned them, and she answered the call first, heading inside. "This way."

They stood there for a moment, the indecision clawing at Zuko's insides. The Avatar shattered the uncomfortable silence first. "You really think we should?"

"We have much of a choice? Either follow strange girl down a dark, foreboding passageway, or face a few hundred Dai Li officers with just our bending skills and good looks. Personally? If it's a trap, she's only one. Much better odds."

"Well whatever you're gonna do," the other girl piped up, "decide fast. The streets are starting to crawl."

Zuko paused only a moment before nodding and heading into the passage. "Come on. We don't have time to lose." They all filed after him with a surprising lack of hesitation, the door to the tunnel grinding shut in their wake.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

The tunnel was dark, a steep downward slope that threatened to trip them at every step. Zuko led them beside this...Jin...person, a ball of fire floating in his hand to light their way. All in all, Aang had little clue what to make of all this. The guy who had been trying to capture him and kill his friends for the last few months had just broke him out of Dai Li custody, and someone he knew was apparently helping them escape the Impenetrable City through a secret not even the Dai Li knew of. Things were, as Sokka would say, bending logic until its back broke.

He caught up beside Zuko, still looking at what he could see of the ground. "Now can we ask what's going on?"

"A jailbreak," he answered curtly. "You're the Avatar. Didn't you figure it out already?"

"I knew that much. I just don't know _why_, other than to take me back to the prison you think I belong in."

"It's still too soon to say anything. All I'll tell you is that I did not break you out of there for anyone else's benefit."

Aang frowned, finally looking up at him. "How do I know you're telling the truth?"

"You don't. But have I lied to you before?"

"Well no...but you've done everything else to try and capture me. Why should I--"

"I've never given you a reason to not trust my word. There is no honor in deception." He looked down at him, quiet but severe. "If I'm going to capture you, I'll do it by my own skill, not trickery."

"Is that what you're doing now?" Aang sniped. "It wouldn't be the first time."

Zuko looked away, muted once again. "Things were different then."

"How? I'm still the Avatar, you're still--"

"No," he growled. "I'm not. And I'll explain once we're out of this godforsaken place."

Much as he hated to admit it, the guy had a point. He'd met far more corrupt people who were supposedly on his own side than on his enemy's, and the irony of it never escaped him. But that didn't make him any less confused about why Zuko of all people was leading him to safety, or why he and his friends were letting him.

Of course, a large part of it was that they really had no other choice, as Sokka said. And admittedly, fighting Zuko was a whole lot easier than fighting the Dai Li. Things had happened so fast -- literally in a matter of hours -- that it was just easier to roll with it right now and figure things out once he found time to breathe, let alone think.

He turned to the girl leading them. "Where _are_ we going?"

Jin smiled. "This city's best kept secret for the last one hundred years. Not even the Dai Li know of it. This tunnel is only one of a thousands networked beneath the surface. Right now, we're a good thirty feet under, one of the shallower ones. Some of them run as deep as two hundred feet."

Zuko blinked, just as confused as Aang. "Why?"

"They were designed and built the same time as the walls, when the war first started. A refuge for citizens to hide in should the city ever be captured or destroyed. We're actually in a venting tunnel right now, one of the ones that allows air into the deeper passages."

"And you're sure the Dai Li don't know? Why wouldn't they?"

Jin nodded. "Because the Earth King who ordered the building of these tunnels isn't the same guy who's in charge now. As the years went by and the city withstood every attack the Fire Nation hurled at it, people adopted the idea that the walls were themselves invincible, and so the tunnels were just forgotten about."

Sokka caught up to them, frowning. "How do you know all this? 'Cause between creepy tour guides and a complete denial there's even a war going on, I'm willing to bet they don't teach this stuff at Ba Sing Se University."

She grinned a little, slightly crooked. "The Dai Li are not the only keepers of this city's secrets. There are some of us who know too much to be afraid."

Zuko's eyes narrowed, looking directly at her. "...Who _are_ you?"

Her smile turned even more cryptic. "That's another one of those secrets." At his even more suspicious look, she chuckled. "Don't let it bother you too much. I'm trustworthy. If I wasn't, I would've turned you in as a Firebender back at that fountain."

He just about tripped over his feet, gaping at her. "How did you...?"

She laughed behind her hand. "Sure, Li. You totally lit all those lanterns within ten seconds because you carry a quiver of flame arrows in your back pocket." A sigh composed her as she led them onward. "Really, how stupid do you think I am?"

Aang looked between them, trying not to laugh with her. "How much further is it?"

"We're halfway into the Lower Ring by now, so it shouldn't be all that much more to walk."

Toph piped up from the back, grinning. "Why walk? I don't know about you, but after ;looking for that bison all day and having to fight those two flunkerettes, my legs ache."

He smiled, nodding. "A little speed can't hurt."

Zuko arched a brow at them both as they struck stance together, pulling up a section of the ground to hold everyone on, pushing and pulling in waves to send them forward through the tunnel. The rock itself bent in front and back of them in a single pulse, propelling them through the passage at a rather nice clip. Enough to feel a breeze rushing on either side. Aang looked up at Jin, grinning.

"Lead the way."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Zuko didn't think it was possible for things to get any weirder as they all made their way out of the tunnel's carefully concealed exit, which was blocked by a large rock that the blind girl had to move for them. The branches of a gigantic oak spread above them as he pulled Jin up onto the surface. Nobody was what they seemed anymore. Innocents were keeping secrets, his enemies were his allies -- for the moment, at any rate -- and Ba Sing Se was quite possibly the most vulnerable city in the world, made so by its own willful ignorance. So much for planning. Not when the rug kept getting ripped out from under his brain. Right now, all he wanted was find Iroh and have some tea to clear his head.

_God, I did not just think that_...

"So..." Jin asked, "Where to from here?"

He found all eyes trained on him, and challenged his insides to calm themselves. "To find my uncle, and hope the Dai Li haven't done so first."

"Then I think you'll be needing a few things. More for your companions than yourself, since their belongings are back in the city someplace." She unhooked a couple of leather pouches at her belt, holding them out. "Here. You have rations in one bag, and coin in the other. It should be enough to buy you some supplies in the next village."

His jaw dropped again, taking the pouches with a flustered squeak. "J-Jin, what are you--"

The Earthbender girl pushed him aside, bowing to her. "He says thank you ever so much, and he'll be sure to pay you back someday. Or at least that's what he _would_ say if he wasn't a total loser."

She giggled, even moreso when he just seethed at them both. "Then you'd best be getting out of here, shouldn't you?"

Aang nodded, starting to lead them all through the moonlit maze of trees. "Yes, yes we should." Zuko felt the Water Tribe girl pulling at his shirt, urging him on as they waved a last farewell to Jin, turning and heading into the woods beyond.

His glare didn't subside as he regarded them all with renewed contempt, wondering if this was still as great an idea as he'd thought a few hours ago. "Do you thank all who help you with insults?"

"Well, not _everyone_," The Water Tribe boy mused. "Just the ones who've tried multiple times to kill us first."

The girl elbowed him sharply. "Please excuse my brother. He can be somewhat of an inconsiderate jerk when stressed."

Aang let his forehead drop into his hand. "Would now be a good time to ask where your uncle is?"

Zuko nodded, deciding to shift his focus to the more important matters at hand to avoid roasting the Avatar's companions to cinders. Or at the very least cauterizing their mouths shut. "Follow me."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

The walk seemed endless, an invisible trail winding up into the barren rocky ledges that encased the forest valley, the moon splitting the sky in two straight overhead by the time they reached the lighted mouth of a single large cave, the scents of tea and fresh jerky and the warm breath of fire wafting from inside.

Despite the growling of his stomach and the watering of his own mouth as he ducked into that of the cave, Sokka surveyed their new shelter with a suspicious frown. "The hell is this?"

Katara looked around after him, blinking. "Judging from the bedrolls, teapot, and cozy-looking fire? I believe it's called a 'campsite.'"

Zuko took his seat next to his uncle, bending the fire a little taller. "You'll want to sit for this one."

They did so, one by one, Aang beating all of them to the question they'd asked constantly since leaving the prison. "Why did you rescue us?"

Zuko picked up one of the fresh cups of tea on the warming plate above the fire, sipping it, before offering them all their respective shares. "To put it as simply as possible...things are about to get very out of hand. Tonight's events have made that perfectly clear. If we're going to fight the same enemy for our own survival, I no longer see a point in fighting each other as well."

Sokka glared at him, unconvinced. "What do you mean 'fighting the same enemy?' You're one of them, aren't you?"

"I was," he replied. "At one time, I wanted desperately to believe that. But it's something I've gotten more unsure of than anything else in my life."

Aang stared into his cup, quiet, his tone heavy with an unspoken understanding. "What made you turn against them?"

He swallowed hard, his voice equally thick with restraint. "When they turned against me first."

At their intrigued stares, he continued, eyes lowered to the ground. "I'm tired. I'm tired of being lied to and tricked and doing everything I'm told, only to have it blow up in my face every single goddamn time. I'm tired of trying to please all the wrong people who are just using me in the end. I'm tired of being kept from what I know is rightfully mine, even if I fulfill my end of the deal."

"What deal?"

"The deal that my banishment would end and I could have my old life back if I managed to capture you and bring you across Fire Nation borders alive. I made the bargain three years ago out of desperation, and it was the single stupidest thing I've ever done in my life."

Aang looked at him knowingly. "They never intended to let you come home, did they?"

Zuko shook his head. "We've been branded as traitors. There are bounties on our heads that could buy a house in the Upper Ring three times over. It's the price of failure where I come from. Especially when there's a war going on."

"So why did you help us?" Toph asked. "Why do something you know is just gonna get you killed?"

"Because I don't care anymore. I'm through caring about whether I'm liked by the wrong side or not. I'm through hiding because I have every nation after my head, including the one I was born in." He looked up at all of them, meeting each of their faces one by one. "War never looks the same once you've been forced onto the losing side of it."

Sokka scowled at him, cheerful as ever. "So you want our help to get back on the 'winning' side? Whatever that is?" He shook his head. "Thanks but no thanks, there's nothing in it for us. We don't need any help from your kind."

Katara drove her elbow into his ribs. _Hard_.

Aang quieted for a moment. "You're assuming there _is_ a winning side. When nations start killing people for no apparent reason, everyone loses."

"Believe me, I know that. I know what you're trying to do, now. Why the Fire Nation wants to stop you. With the current setup, though., I'm wondering why they're bothering to try." He looked up at him. "You can only do so much, Avatar. If there is anything that living on the other side of this war's taught me, it's that the Fire Nation won't be stopped by the force of the Elements alone. It doesn't matter who is mediating; if people want to fight, they will fight. You can't force peace on those who will have no parts of it. And as long as my father and those like him remain in control, my country will continue marching to war like it's a Fire Festival."

"So what's your solution, Ponytail Guy?" Sokka scoffed. "If your country's full of psychotic warlords and run by the craziest one available, what do you plan to do about it?"

Zuko looked at them all, putting his tea down. "Three years ago, I lost everything. My throne, my country, my honor, my dignity, because I saw injustice and dared to speak out of turn against it. My only hope had been finding the Avatar and bringing him to my father. Only then, I believed, would my life return to normal. I was wrong. It took me three years of digging through lies my sister told me and lies I told myself to realize it, but capturing the Avatar would never win back my father's favor. My old life was gone. And everything with it.

"But right before it happened, right before it all fell apart...I was told something very important: to never forget who I am. For three years, I've done exactly that, fooled by a promise that my father had no intention of keeping." He turned to look Katara square in the eye. "_Someone_ reminded me of those words today. Of who I was. And who I still am.

"What I finally realized, after three years of hunting and searching and running around in circles, is that I had no honor to regain. I had none to start with. Honor isn't something that's given to you by virtue of birth. You have to earn it. And so far...I've done nothing that even comes close. In fact, I've done exactly the opposite." He let his voice drop to a low, determined growl. "It's time to remember who I am. To stop following and start leading, and do what _I_ think is right for a change."

"I am Prince Zuko, heir to the throne of the Fire Nation. I can...I _will_ change the world."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	6. Separate Ways

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 6: Separate Ways

* * *

The fire's crackle was the only sound in that cave, breath and heart silenced by the revelation for the longest half a minute in the world.

It made sense, of course, when actually thought about. But having gone from battle to prison to freedom with a former enemy now a self-confessed ally in less than twelve hours, none of them were ready to think much about anything. At least not without some decent rest first. Sokka broke the crushing vacuum, his voice a little wavery.

"Y-You're kidding, right? You're totally pulling our legs or somebody slipped me cactus juice or _something_..."

Toph snorted. "Oh I'm sure there's cactus juice involved, but I don't think you're the one they slipped it to."

Aang ignored them, looking straight at Zuko. "If you're going to be Fire Lord, then..."

"...I'm going to need your help. And you'll need mine."

"I repeat," Sokka scoffed, "what the hell kind of help could we possibly need from you?"

Zuko glared at him, but kept his voice even. "You're planning to invade the Fire Nation, correct? How much do you know about them?"

"What could we possibly need to know?" Sokka pouted.

Zuko glared at him, holding on to his temper rather admirably. "Terrain? Layout of the capital city? Army and navy numbers? Hell, your friend here is going to need someone to teach him Firebending, isn't he?"

Aang looked between them both, pausing as though to choose his words carefully. "If you're willing to help us...we'll return the favor. We need all the allies we can get."

"Are you out of your freakin' _mind?_" Sokka yelled.

"Careful," Toph quipped. "You're implying he has a mind to be out of."

Zuko ignored them both. "What were you doing in Ba Sing Se, anyway? Besides crossing the Dai Li."

"Well... We were trying to find my bison, for starters." His expression fell into that familiar, forlorn look. "He was kidnapped out in the desert. We were told he'd be in Ba Sing Se by now."

"Actually..." Sokka interjected, a nervous hand scratching his nape to compliment the waver in his voice, "we were gonna tell you we found something, but we got sidetracked by Miss Crazypants' sidekicks." All eyes turned to him, attentive and alert. He swallowed hard, looking to Toph first before continuing. "We found his footprint in a secluded part of the city, on a part of the ground that had recently been bended. Toph retraced the bender's actions, and...the street kinda flipped. Like he'd been shoved underground."

"I...guess that would explain why nobody saw him, wouldn't it?" Aang pondered, looking at the ground.

"Very likely," the old man, who'd been observedly silent up to now, agreed. "No doubt the person who bended the street knew exactly where they were putting him."

Toph's eyes narrowed in suspicion, before taking a longer sip. "Who are you?"

Zuko blinked at her as though realizing something, then looked back at the ground, more than a little embarrassed. "Forgive me for the lack of introduction. This is my Uncle Iroh, brother to Fire Lord Ozai."

"I knew your voice was familiar."

Sokka stared at her, torn between bowled over and horrified. "You met each other?"

She nodded. "In the forest when I ran away that time. He gave me some great tea. And even better advice."

Iroh smiled. "Why thank you, young lady."

Zuko lowered his gaze, sighing. "Trying to find your mount could not have angered the Dai Li enough to throw you in prison. What else were you doing there?"

Aang bit his lip, turning to Sokka and Toph, who frowned back hesitantly. Until Katara broke their silence with muted admission.

"We were trying to see the Earth King. We have some important information he needs to hear."

"...And the Dai Li would have none of it," Iroh finished. "What kind of information?"

She closed her eyes, letting out a breath. "An eclipse. Set to happen before Souzen's Comet arrives at the end of Summer."

Zuko blinked, but didn't say a word.

Aang continued after a moment of awkward quiet. "We...found out about it in the desert library. There was a scroll that said the last eclipse was the Fire Nation's 'darkest day.' Aside from the obvious, would you...know what that meant? What happened?"

He looked at his uncle for a moment, turning back to them when the old man nodded. "Almost four hundred years ago. At the end of the Fire Nation's last civil war." He sighed. "There was a succession crisis when Fire Lord Rokan's only son died of a fever. At the time, women couldn't inherit the throne and he had no brothers. When he himself died, all Hell broke loose."

"The Fire Lord instead had two cousins, Quing and Yuan, who both claimed heirship," Iroh continued. "War broke out soon after, and the cousins met on the battlefield. Their fight ended in a victory for Yuan, and the eclipse itself occurred just as Quing fell." He sipped his tea, pausing. "Yuan became the grandfather of Fire Lord Souzen."

Aang bowed his head, thoughtful as Iroh spoke again. "His branch of the Royal Family changed everything. War with the other nations hadn't even been considered before then, and it still took two generations before Souzen made the first move." He shook his head. "And yet, the history before Yuan's time has been all but forgotten, struck from the record. Remembered only by those who risked their tongues to pass it down by word of mouth. You will never hear any modern Fire Nation citizen call that eclipse our darkest day if they want to live."

Sokka stared at his tea, frowning. "And...what about _this_ eclipse?"

Iroh sipped his tea quietly. "A Golden Age. Utter disaster. The end of the world. Or the beginning. Nobody knows for sure, but it's all the same, really. It always means a big change. Sometimes good, sometimes bad."

"So...we really won't know until it happens?" Toph asked. He nodded.

"Well, all I know is that it's the only good shot we have before that comet arrives," Sokka sighed. "We can't afford to miss it."

"In that case, we just take up where we left off before," Aang said. "We tell the Earth King and prepare."

Zuko's eyes narrowed. "That means going back into the city that just tried to arrest you."

Aang grinned. "Hey, we've got a network of underground tunnels on our side. We could dig right into his chambers if we had to, right?"

"Crazy, but he's got a point," Toph snorted. "In any case, I move for a vote of doing absolutely nothing until we all get some sleep. I don't know about you all, but I'm way too tired to find my way through anything but a bedroll."

Iroh nodded. "It's been a long day. We can all use some rest."

"You expect me to sleep in a cave with a couple of Firebenders?" Sokka exclaimed. "One of whom's been trying to kill us for the last few months?"

"Of course not," Zuko said. "You're perfectly welcome to go back to the Dai Li prison and sleep there. I'm sure they'll be happy to have you."

Sokka scowled at him before turning back to the fire in silent concession. Iroh smiled, pouring them all another round of tea. "Relax, all of you. We're a little tense now, but I'm sure that will change once we've rested."

"I think it'll take more than a little shut-eye for me to say this is a good idea."

Zuko turned to the pack of supplies Iroh brought with him, pulling out the extra blankets. "What you think isn't exactly on the list of high priorities, unless it involves a means of contacting the Earth King or finding the bison." He handed a blanket to Aang for him and Toph to share since they were both small, then pitched another at Sokka, who grumblingly caught it in the face.

He dug the last one out for Katara, having to get up and pick his way across the cave to hand it to her, as she sat at the very edge of the firelight. She took it absently, merely folding it in her lap as she stared down at her tea, which had hardly been touched. He arched a brow, only noticing then that she hadn't really moved or spoken a word since mentioning the eclipse. "Is there a good reason you're off brooding in the dark?"

She jumped, looking up at him for a moment before averting her eyes. But she didn't say anything.

"I'm not going to bite, you know."

She sighed, letting her eyes close. "About...About the tea shop. I'm sorry."

He stared for a moment, unable to speak. That certainly wasn't the answer he'd been expecting. "You said that already."

"I know...I want to say it again, ok? I'm sorry. That wasn't my place."

He paused for a moment, mulling over his words carefully, not wanting to admit how awkward it felt to have someone actually apologize to him. His legs folded underneath him, sitting there stiffly in front of her as she shifted the blanket closer to her chest. "It'snothing. Really. We have bigger things to worry about now than angry words."

"What I said hurt you. You don't have to pretend it didn't." She sighed again. "Go ahead and say it if you want. I was being a royal bitch."

He regarded her for a moment, the way the glow of the fire flickered across her features, which had grown older than they ever should have since he first stormed her village that fall. It slipped he could stop himself, the only remotely intelligent thing he could think of. "You'll have to try a lot harder than that to outdo my sister."

She looked up, meeting his eyes for a moment, as though to process the words and their speaker. A hand covered her mouth to muffle an avalanche of laughter, her eyes clenched shut and her shoulders hunching up tight. For some reason, the sight made him feel... He couldn't quite call it _happy_, but it was definitely satisfying. As though he'd just made an important accomplishment.

For the first time in a very long time, he smiled.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

The next morning found them leaving not long after sunrise, having drunk their fill of strong black tea and eaten some of the provisions Jin gave them. Iroh shoved the last of the blankets into the pack, following at their backs as they exited the cave into the sunlight. It was much easier to see how high up they were in the daytime, the rocky face of the cliffs tumbling below their feet into sprawling forest that didn't stop until it hit the first wall of Ba Sing Se. Sokka sucked in a breath as grasped for a handhold, picking his way carefully down the rock. They reached the bottom with no small amount of help from Toph, staring off into the dark woods that towered before them.

"So...now where to?" he asked, looking to Zuko, who stared intently down a deep path of trees.

"The tunnel entrance is this way." He shouldered the supply pack, the others following him in turn.

The leaves were thick above their heads, blocking enough of the light that it seemed closer to evening than late morning, although it kept the sun safely off their backs. Not for the first time did Sokka wonder how on earth he'd been talked into this. Well, screamed at, insulted, and cracked upside the head into it would be more accurate, but who was he to argue semantics? The end result was the same: he was trusting his back to a Firebender. And not just any Firebender. The very same one who'd been doggedly chasing his friends for not quite six months. Oh, and he was the crown prince of the nation behind the war.

Yeah. _That_ guy.

He supposed it came with being the only sane member of the group. Or so it felt most of the time, what with everyone completely ignoring him only to find out he was right later. He watched for gnarled tree roots that seemed bent on tripping him up, picking his way through the rather unstable ground. Here they went again, following someone that nobody with two brain cells to rub together would trust to guard a pig farm, and just like last time, he was going to be left bailing everyone else out of trouble when Zuko led them straight onto a Fire Nation prison rig. At least he had the sense to stay behind Zuko; it was a lot more difficult to sneak attack someone from the front.

Well, it _seemed_ like a good idea. Until Zuko stopped short, making the rest of them have to follow suit on an arrowpoint. Sokka flailed for a moment, catching the tree for support. "Couldn't you have warned--"

Toph hushed him from in front of Zuko. "There's someone ahead of us. I can feel it."

All of them stopped, holding still as she bent down to press her palm to the earth, listening. None of them could hear anything, but Sokka knew better than to doubt the girl's gift.

Toph stood up, venturing ahead a little bit. "...Suki?"

No sooner did she say so then the familiar figure stepped out into their path, Kyoshi uniform torn and dirtied, face scratched up through the makeup, and her hair lightly singed at the ends. She looked up at them all, before running at Sokka and nearly tackling him with a hug. Not that he minded or anything.

"Thank God I found you guys! We have a problem. A big one."

Sokka looked her over, fingering a burned spot on her shoulder. "You don't say. What happened to you?"

"More like who happened." She backed up, turning to Aang. "We were attacked out in the woods. Some girl who was looking for you. She was Fire Nation... Said there was a large-scale attack coming, but she clobbered me and ran before I could get anything else out of her."

"What did she look like?" Zuko asked, suddenly alert.

"Well, she was wearing a topknot and some rich-looking clothes, as were her two friends..." Suki frowned. "Who the hell are _you?_"

Sokka grinned, unable to resist it. "You remember that guy who attacked your island looking for Aang...?"

She blinked, then turned a glare upon him that Sokka swore could have frozen certain parts of his anatomy clean off. The look on Zuko's face at her gloved fingers reaching for the razor-edged fan at her belt only made it better.

"Relax, he's on our side now," Aang jumped in, stilling her hand. "It's okay."

Suki looked between him and Zuko, then turned back to Sokka as though to ask if he'd been hitting the cactus juice again. He felt his cheeks pinken, rubbing the back of his head. "Um...long story."

"Which it doesnt look like we have time for," Toph cut him off, turning to Zuko. "You know her?"

He lowered his head, thoughtful. "If she's after the Avatar... It has to be my sister."

"And her flunkerettes? As in those three chicks who chased us all the way to the Serpent's Pass?" Sokka asked, brow quirked in interest.

Zuko nodded. "Don't take what she says too heavily. Azula _always_ lies."

"Perhaps," Iroh agreed, stroking his chin. "But consider for a moment that she's not. Is that a risk you're willing to take?"

Silence settled over them like a pall, as though the air itself awaited an answer to that question. Zuko looked around at all of them, then lowered his gaze to the ground. "No. I'm not."

"Then we need to check it out," Sokka said. "And quickly. We're on a time limit, here."

"And I guess Appa can just stay lost?" Toph piped up.

Aang shook his head. "We can do both in teams. One will head off to check out this story, the other will follow me to go look for Appa."

"Well, you're gonna need me underground, no bones about it. Especially if we can't find His Highness' little friend again."

Aang turned to Zuko. "You and your uncle should go check out that girl's story. You'll know more about what people tell you than any of us will."

"I'm assuming we won't be by ourselves, right?"

Aang frowned. "I hope not." He turned to the rest of them expectantly. "Any takers?"

"I can go with you," Katara said. "I'm a lot more useful above ground than under it."

"Then you'd better believe I'm coming, too," Sokka growled, before he could think better of it, "No way in hell am I letting my sister go alone with you guys."

"Sokka, I'm not--"

"Are you crazy? Have you _seen_--"

"Let him come with you, Katara," Aang cut them off. "He won't be much help on our side if he's too busy worrying about you."

She sighed, flashing her brother an exasperated look. "Fine. Whatever. Just try to remember that we're not enemies, and I'm not defenseless, ok?"

He snorted. "No guarantees on the first part. You got the second one covered, though."

"I guess that settles it," Toph said. "Team Aang, this way!"

They each shouldered a share of the supplies, heading onto their chosen paths. One back to the city that no longer welcomed them, and one into an even more hostile outskirts.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

The tunnel entrance wasn't nearly so hard to locate on the second try, and they found themselves shrouded in darkness and cold, wet dirt once again. Suki had her lantern lit for the rest of them who were unfortunate enough not to be the best Earthbenders to ever breathe, while Toph felt more than comfortable at the group's head.

"So...Where do you think the city's center is?" Aang asked.

"The tunnel entrance we came in was at the Northern Wall," Suki said. "Means we need to head south."

He looked around, noting the yawning mouth of tunnel before and aft of them. "And south would be...?"

"The way we're going," Toph snapped. "You think I'd be ahead of you two if I were lost?" Before he could ask, she turned around, cutting him off. "I don't need to see to know which way's south. The ground knows that. It always pulls to the north."

Aang and Suki echanged confused glances before looking back at her.

"You're a walking compass?"

"You could say that" she growled. "I just listen to the rocks, ok?"

Suki's eyes narrowed at the darkness. "Do rocks make footsteps?"

Aang looked up, following her gaze into the pitch black path ahead of them. There was no mistaking the rustle of shoes and skirts against stone, the same one they'd heard back in the city before that girl showed up to help them. He squinted, able to pick out the rhythmic bobbing of a lantern some distance away, calling out warily. "...Jin?"

The light bobbed faster, coming steadily closer to them, until the glow revealed that familiar rounded face and pulled-up hair. She stopped, holding the lantern aloft and breathing hard. "What are you doing back here? I thought you were gonna go find Li's uncle..."

"We did," Aang told her. "But...stuff came up." At her expression, he sighed. "We need to find my bison and get under the Earth King's chambers."

"In that order," Toph added.

"...I see," she said, pausing thoughtfully. "And you have reason to believe your bison is underground?"

"Let's just say that when the section of the street you're standing on flips over, there aren't too many other places you could be," Toph answered.

Jin frowned. "If that's the case, he would have to have been right over one of the venting tunnels. He could be anywhere by now... What part of the city were you in when you found the bended street?"

"It was...a really crappy part of town. Away from all the restaurants and shops and stuff. Smelled like hay and rotten things."

Jin stroked her chin thoughtfully, brows narrowed. "That sounds like Quing East in the Middle Ring. The industrial district, where all the...uglier...aspects of the city are housed. It's always deserted compared to everything else, because the only people who go there are workers for the city."

"Perfect place to hide a flying bison, then. Right?"

"I guess so. Yeah."

Aang sighed. "Which way is Quing East?"

Jin looked around them, swinging the lantern to illuminate certain walls of rock. "This is the North Pau entrance, so we should be heading east."

"Then let's go," Toph said. "We don't have all year."

Aang nodded, muttering under his breath as Jin lead them into the darkness. "We don't even have _half_ of it..."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"I still don't know how the hell I let you talk me into this," Sokka growled, hanging back a ways behind Zuko and Iroh. Mostly to talk to his sister, but there was also the part of him that preferred their new "allies" in front where he could see them.

"Because having someone that close to the Fire Lord on our side is too good an opportunity to pass up and you know it?" Katara replied, low enough that their companions wouldn't hear. "We need all the help we can get."

"How many times do I have to say it? They're not _on_ our side. He's waiting for the right moment to--"

"--Capture Aang with nothing but his mind and his good looks? In case you didn't notice, he opted to travel with _us_, not the Avatar."

Sokka crossed his arms, pouting. "How do _you_ know he's not a ninja?"

"Sokka? Ninjas move silently in the dark, not kidnap people miles away from them." She paused. "Which would make him a really _lousy_ one."

Indeed, Zuko didn't seem to care much about moving silently in the daylight, either, sheaths of his broadswords clacking in rhythm with his heavy gait. For that matter, neither did Iroh. He supposed it was the vestiges of the Fire Nation manifesto. They owned the world and they knew it. There was no need for stealth when everyone knew better than to atack you.

Not that it was the case anymore, but old habits die hard.

He finally took in a deeper, psyching breath, loping up closer behind them. "So...if we're supposed to be expecting a huge shock-and-awe attack that will leave us begging for mercy, is there a reason we're heading north when the closest Fire Nation stronghold is southwest?"

Iroh shook his head. "If Azula's story is true, the attack will not come from Omashu. Not the kind of resources needed for such an operation."

"But there's just the coastline north of here," Katara said, on Sokka's heels. "Are they coming by sea?"

Iroh turned to her, serious and a touch cryptic. "There is the Northern Air Temple east of here."

"What's that got to do with it?" Zuko asked. "The Air Temples are deserted, aren't they?"

Katara frowned, looking to Sokka. "Not entirely."

He met her gaze, feeling a sick, cold knot settle in his stomach before turning to Iroh. "You don't think..."

"I don't know," the old man replied. "But if any attack is to befall Ba Sing Se and have even a chance at success... It would be using the latest engineering and strategy, not the same infantry marches that have been failing for the last hundred years."

Zuko narrowed his eyes at him. "What's this have to do with the Northern Air Temple?"

Katara glanced at her brother, face hardening, before turning to Zuko. "The Fire Nation captured it, and forced the engineer to develop weaponry for them. We liberated it just before the Northern Siege, but... We haven't been back there in months."

Iroh nodded. "If Omashu fell, it's highly likely the temple has, too. There is no way my brother would fail to have a place that valuable recaptured."

"Then we _really_ don't have a lot of time," Sokka said. "Let's get a move on, and hope to hell we're wrong."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	7. Underground

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 7: Underground

* * *

"This feels like the right place," Toph remarked, tapping the ground with her foot. "Not the exact spot, but pretty close to it. Not like Appa would stay still in a place like this anyway." 

Jin swung her lantern to examine the walls, narrowing her eyes at a particulatr spot and running her hand over it. "This is definitely the Quing East main passage. He would've likely been dumped into the venting tunnel north of here. Which means the only direction he could've come is this way."

Aang came up behind her, curious. "What's that?"

"What's what?"

"That mark on the wall that you're looking at." He pointed to it, frowning. "It's...not writing. Or doesn't look like it, at least."

She shook her head. "It isn't. Not writing you would understand, at any rate."

He followed her behind Toph as they headed further into the passage, feeling his insides knot up at her crypticness. "Look, we're on your side, okay? You don't have to keep us in the dark anymore."

She shook her head. "We're living in a dangerous time, Avatar. The less you know of these things, the better."

He pursed his lips, brows drawing together. "Which means I can't just blindly trust people. You know things even the Dai Li don't, but you won't tell me why. Or how. I'm just a kid, but if I'm supposed to save the world, I can't go running in without all the facts, you know?"

She turned back to the ground, the glow of the lantern making her features appear harder and more drawn than they ever should have. As if the knowledge she harbored had aged her unfairly. A sigh seemed to pull the last of her energy right out of her, eyes misting over in the firelight.

"The Earth King who built these tunnels a hundred years ago when the war first started. At that time...they weren't just a precautionary refuge. Ba Sing Se was the headquarters of the White Lotus. The passages were built as a secret means of travel throughout the city for the society's members. But as the Dai Li grew more powerful and tightened their choke-hold on the throne, the White Lotus moved their main operations elsewhere."

Aang blinked. "The White Lotus?"

She nodded. "A society whose history goes back almost four hundred years, when the current dynasty of the Fire Nation first took over. Originally founded by one of Fire Lord Yuan's advisors and some palace servants." She snorted, smirking a bit. "They've been plotting for centuries to turn things over, but they just haven't had the support for their cause until now. Hard to find too many people in your own brainwashed and war-hungry nation who will go against a Fire Lord willing to give you everything you want."

Toph stopped ahead of them, raising her head. "I don't think you ever answered Twinkle Toes' question. How do you know all this?"

She arched an eyebrow at the girl, then turned back to Aang.

"And we're depending on _you_ to save the world?... We're so doomed."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

He hated the dark. He hated the damp. He hated the smell and cramping and the dirt in his fur. Most of all, he hated the way the air felt down here, still and heavy and almost sick, not at all the free-flowing, happy breezes he'd grown up with atop the spires of the Southern Air Temple. This was depressed, trapped air. Air that knew it was not where it should be; inside the earth rather than above it.

Most of all, there was a distinct lack of apples, which made him grumpiest of all. If Fire Lord Ozai himself deigned to offer him one, he might have licked him.

The voices from down the passage helped somewhat. They'd fed him what little they could, though for a ten-ton fluffy monster, some strips of dried fruit and rations of jerky weren't nearly enough. Their company was what kept him calm as possible, though. The mere chance of finding other humans in this dark, cold subterranean hell was comforting. Even if they did wear strange clothes, they were friendly, and with any luck they knew a way out of here.

He yawned, curling up to sleep, as there wasn't much else to do and he didn't want to risk getting more lost than he already was. His eyes closed heavily, that rhythmic purr shaking the rock itself as he drifted off.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"Look," Aang growled. "I've just been held captive in a dungeon by the city that's supposed to be on _my_ side, and I got rescued by the guy who's been _trying_ to capture me since before Winter! I really can;t afford to go assuming anything about anybody, 'cause chances are I'm wrong! And now? This late in the game? Being wrong about one thing can mean disaster for everybody!"

Jin stopped, sighing and staring back at the ground. "I know. Believe me, I know. It's not easy to trust people when you know they're hiding things from you. But you've got to this time. I can't just go spilling all my secrets to you, no matter how much I'd like to. You have no idea how many lives are hanging in the balance, here. I'm just asking you to trust that I will help you do what you need to. You don't have to know how."

Toph turned around, facing them with that utterly blank stare. "You said the tunnels were built by the Earth King, right?"

"Yeah."

"Then that means there should be one going into his chambers. Or one would hope, if he was in league with the White Lotus."

Jin nodded. "There is. But you wanted to find the bison first, right?"

"If that many people are in danger, we may not have time. Right now, the information we have for the Earth King could save thousands of people. And clock's ticking."

"She's right," Aang sighed. "If we can find the Earth King before we find Appa..."

Jin nodded. "Follow me. The Chamber Passage is in the dead center of the city. Southwest of here."

They turned, heading down the first branching tunnel with a quick, determined pace, Jin in the lead. Aang could barely keep track of the twists and turns as the girl led them through the winding labyrinth, lantern swinging ahead of her, every so often checking the walls for those carvings. Time was utterly lost on him. Not without a sun to go by. Measured only in the sounds of her skirts scraping over the ground and the dull, throbbing ache in his feet.

_I'm sorry, Buddy. I'll find you soon. I promise. But there are too many people counting on me right now, and I can't disappoint them_...

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Hours later -- or even days, at this point he really couldn't tell -- found him struggling to drag one foot in front of the other, trudging down the passages. Until a sudden stop from Toph made both him and Jin freeze in their tracks.

"What is it?"

"People," she said. "Ahead of us. I thought you said these tunnels were secret."

"They _are_," Jin growled, her brow furrowed. She turned, putting the lantern out and plunging all of them into velvety pitch black darkness. She pressed her back to the wall, feeling along it, until even they were able to hear what Toph had felt long before. They were deep and low. Male and many. She she could faintly smell the smoke of campfires.

Why on earth there'd be people camping in the middle of the tunnel network... There were only two reasons for it. One was good, the other meant they'd better get the hell out of town and fast. Her features hardened even further as the first flickers of firelight shown on the walls ahead, round the corner. She stopped them, turning to Aang.

"Stay here. Let me go first. I'll tell you to follow if it's safe. If not, be prepared to start running." With that, she edged forward, enough to peer around the wall into the passage.

Cooking and campfires crowded the tunnel like ground torches, each one surrounded by tall, burly men dressed in shabby, dated uniforms. The thinner men still wore shirts to keep warm in dark and cold of a world sans sunlight, while the larger ones went without to get as much out of the scant breeze from the venting tunnels as possible. She guessed from the looks of things that there were at least a couple hundred.

Yet it wasn't unil she caught the firelight glinting off the piles of armor in the passage alcove that her stomach twisted into a sickening knot of dread.

She gasped, pulling back so as not to be seen. Only to have her hands knock a loose chunk of rock to the ground with a very loud, very unstealthy thud.

One of the men looked up immediately, eyes squarely on her. She gulped, meeting that gaze for mere seconds before backing up and running.

He was up and chasing her in equal time, fire blazing from his palm. "You! Come back here!"

_Like hell!_

She shouted to them, pushing Aang ahead of her. "Run!"

Their footsteps pounded down the passage, Toph pulling Aang with her while Jin periodically turned around to gauge how much ground they were losing. Of course, she realized, she probably ought to have relit that lantern. But when being tailed by a Firebender -- nay, one of a whole camp of Firebenders -- such details are really the last things to come to mind, even if they should be the most important.

Indeed, had she been able to see where she was going, she might not have tripped on that pesky stone, hitting the ground with a grunt and a slam of stinging wrists and knees, and a shock of pain up her leg.

"Jin!--"

"_Run!_" she shouted. "You don't have time! Just keep going southeast to the flower bed!"

She heard Toph pull him away as she tried to get to her feet again, only to be yanked up by a large, strong hand over her wrist. Its partner blazed inches from her face, and she found herself staring into that of a rather angry man.

"Who are you!" he damanded. "What are you doing down here!"

She struggled, fruitless as it was, defying on pure principle. It didn't surprise her in the least when the wall met her back and his hand clamped both her wrists to the rock. The rest of his weight pinned her legs to the wall, and he growled again. "Answer me, and I promise you won't be harmed. Who are you, and what are you doing down here?"

She growled, meeting his face for a moment before spitting in it. "I could ask you the same thing, buster. What the holy flying hell are _your_ kind doing down here! You think I owe you a goddamn work when you throw me against a wall? Do I look armed?"

"You found this camp, little girl. That's more than enough reason for me to get the truth out of you." He pressed her harder against the rock with his weight, letting the edges dig into her back. "Who are you?"

She grunted, straining against his grip. "What scum wants to know?"

"This labyrinth is a sanctuary. Curious children shouldn't be playing down here." He glared back just as angrily, the fire in his fist flaring just a little hotter. "You know of my camp's location, which gives me no choice but to kill you in the next three seconds if you don't cooperate. I won't hurt you if you tell me who you are, and why you're down here in the first place. You're far too young to even know these tunnels exist."

"Too young?!" she shrieked. "I've been playing in these tunnels since I was six! My father showed then to me! If there's anyone who doesn't belong here, it's _you!_" His eyes widened in bewilderment, grip slackening enough for her to wriggle her hands free and shove him off. She advanced, scowling and seizing his wrist and pushing up the sleeve of his threadbare tunic.

The tattoo stared back at her, unmistakeable in the light of the fire flickering from his opposite hand. "Goddamn. Did your initiator teach you to beat the crap out of random women, or was that something you picked up in the military?"

He gaped, looking from his arm to her face and back a few times. "What the...? You? You're a...?"

"Why the hell else would I be down here?" she spat. "Now it's my turn. Who the hell are _you_?"

He slid from her grip with a look of utter shock on his face, stepping back and bowing low to her, as though she were several notches of status above him. "My sincerest apologies. Please, forgive me."

She gulped, looking at him warily. It wasn't every day that a Firebender kissed the ground at her feet. "Um...ok. Apology accepted. You can stop bowing like that, it's kinda freaking me out."

He rose again, looking at her severely, his previous anger replaced by a long-carried reverence. Which, really, she found far more disconcerting than the scowl and look of imminent death.

"The daughter of the man who saved my entire battalion demands that kind of respect."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	8. Shen Lei

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 8: Shen Lei

* * *

Jin shook her head, just staring at him in bewilderment. "_What?_"

He smiled slightly. Knowingly, almost. "Your father, Jiu Zhu. Master of the Tunnel Project, am I right?"

She nodded, not really sure what else to say.

"He's the one who showed my men and I down here when we escaped the Dragon's broken siege. He initiated me, and promised to keep my division safe in return for my help on the project."

Her brows narrowed, recalling the identifier markings on the passage walls. The toolmarks used to make them, cruder than any self-respecting Earth Kingdom artisan, bender or not, would have done. Her voice lowered in understanding. "Those were your carvings, weren't they? You've been mapping the network for the last ten years."

He nodded. "Since we're not Earthbenders, we've been doing it the hard way. So far, we have almost three-fourths of the map completed."

"Not bad for having to figure it all out yourselves."

"Thank you." He held out his hand. "I'm Shen Lei. Are you all right?"

She reached out to take it, as much for support as in greeting. "Jin. Other than the ankle and the slight heart attack, I'm fine."

He draped her arm across the back of his neck, the other circling her waist as he led her down the passage from which he'd come, lighting their way with a blazing palm. "Then I think I'd better take you to the camp and have it looked at. We can wrap it for you, at least."

"I think I'd like that, yeah." She let him, favoring that foot until he set her down by the campfire he'd been sitting at when she first snuck up on them, pulling off her shoe and pushing the skirt of her robes up just enough to see the injured foot. "It looks a lot worse than it is, I'm sure..."

He shook his head, tearing off a strip of his cloak. "It's already starting to swell. It needs wrapped. I'd get some ice for you if we had any."

She winced as he started to wrap the ankle, sucking in a breath. "It's ok. Really. I'm just gonna have a fun time going topside again."

"By rights, you should be staying off that foot. You don't want to injure it more than it already is." At her nod of agreement, he sat back a bit, propping her foot up on some piled blankets. "What were you doing back there, exactly? You looked like you were guiding someone."

She lowered her head, nodding. "You saw his tattoos?"

He nodded, knowing. "What's his business in Ba Sing Se? Especially in the tunnels?"

"He's trying to see the Earth King. And he has reason to believe his bison is lost down here."

He froze, staring at her as though she'd grown an extra head. "Nobody's cast one of those crazy luck charms on you, have they?"

"Not that I'm aware of. Why?"

He smiled. "The bison's here. In the northwest antechamber. We found him a few weeks ago wandering the tunnels, and well...it was a pretty big clue that things were getting heated on the surface. The Avatar need not worry, we've been caring for him." He sighed. "Gives us something to do, at least. You wouldn't believe how boring it gets down here."

"You're kidding, right?" she asked. At the shake of his head, she smiled. "I think you just made that kid's month. He'll be thrilled."

Shen chuckled, flagging over one of his men. "Lao, we found the bison's master. Last I saw he was headed down the East Quai Mien passage. I need you to find him and tell him to come back here. Call him by name if you must, but don't attack him, even if he engages you."

Lao nodded, bowing. "Yes, Sir." He shouldered his cloak, heading off into the dark of the tunnel.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Aang stumbled against the wall of the passage, panting heavily as Momo alighted on his shoulder, Toph coming up behind him equally out of breath.

"We lose 'em?"

She nodded. "I don't feel anything, so they're nowhere close to us." Aang sank against the rock, exhausted from running and unable to help being worried about that girl.

"You think she's okay?"

Toph shrugged. "She told us to run, didn't she?"

"Well yeah, but...she had a Fire Nation soldier chasing her. And he didn't look happy."

"I don't know if you just can't pick up on the obvious or what, but she's not defenseless. She knows a lot of stuff we don't. I doubt that guy gave her a whole lot of trouble, and even if he did, she probably knows a hundred ways to lose him in a labyrinth like this."

Aang sighed, staring off down the passage from which they came. She'd told them to run for the flower bed, whatever that meant. Considering their surroundings, he figured it was likely a codeword for a certain passage they had to find. But it wasn't safe to assume anything, and he knew it.

"She said...'run to the flower bed.' What do you think she meant?"

Toph's brows narrowed, thoughtful. "She could've meant anything. But I doubt there's an actual flower bed we need to find, unless that's what they're calling mold and cave mushrooms now."

He turned to the yawning darkness ahead of them, never having felt so...lost. Not even just within the tunnels. His friend was missing, and while he knew what he had to do, it seemed circumstance was hellbent on coming up with more creative ways to thwart him. Ways that managed to separate him from the very people he depended on for help, and left him wondering just how he was going to fix this mess.

There was no way he would let himself fail. He'd let the world down once already, and it wasn't going to happen again. The question was how he planned on succeeding.

Toph suddenly putting her hand to the ground snapped him out of those dismal thoughts. "We've got company!"

He immediately bounded to his feet, taking stance.

"There is no need for that. I won't attack you."

He didn't relax a muscle. "How do we know? Who are you?"

Now, he could actually discern a figure, dimly lit by a blazing hand. Somewhat short for Fire Nation, compact and sinewy, topknot bobbing as he walked. "Because I could've easily sent a whirlwind of flames through this tunnel and cooked the both of you alive, but I didn't. From what you've seen of the Fire Nation, I would hope that might be enough." He stopped, close enough that Aang could get a decent look at his face. Young, but not very, and paler than even the Earth Kingdom nobles. "I am Lao. It is an honor, Avatar, to finally meet you."

He still didn't lower his guard. "What do you want?"

"That girl you were travelling with--"

"What happened to her!"

"Relax," Lao assured him. "She's safe. My Captain told me to bring you to him. He has something important for you."

Aang blinked, looking to Toph. She nodded.

"He's telling the truth. I can feel it in his heartbeat."

He gulped, turning back to Lao. "Fine. But if you prove her wrong, it's over."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

It didn't take long for him to lead them back to the tunnel Jin had left them at, and the smell of burning was his first clue why she'd told them to run. They rounded the corner, heading a long passageway strung with small bands of Fire Nation soldiers, all seated around camp and cooking fires. It didn't take him long to spot Jin, seated at one of the very front fires, her foot wrapped and resting on a pile of blankets, talking to another older-looking soldier. But one with a very clear air of leadership about him.

"Captain!" Lao called.

The man looked up, getting to his feet and dusting off his pants, approaching Aang with a low bow. "Greetings, Avatar. Glad you decided to join us."

Aang glanced at Jin, before turning back to his impromptu host. "And you are...?"

"Captain Shen Lei, of the Second Taifeng Infantry. Pleased to meet you."

Jin nodded, though she didn't dare try to stand. "It's ok. He's on your side."

Aang frowned, not quite ready to return the bow. If for nothing else than it left his back exposed. "Your guy here said you had something important for me?"

"Yes," Shen said, nodding. "We ran into a friend of yours a while ago, and he's been eager to see you again."

He glanced at Toph, now just confused.

"What friend?" she piped up for him.

Shen smiled. "You'll find out in a minute. Follow me."

Aang gave Jin a look, before meeting Toph's blank yet penetrating gaze. "What do you think?"

"He's not lying, I know that much. And the girl isn't dead. I really can't think of a reason not to trust what he says. Other than cactus being more popular than we suspected. At this point, I wouldn't rule it out." He sighed, watching the captain head off down a side passage. "It's your call, Fearless Leader."

He paused, just letting every possible scenario cram through his mind in the space of a few minutes, the worst of which involved hanving to fight the entire battalion off with just the two of them. And yet, the best one...

"Let's go."

He grabbed Toph's hand, following Shen down the tunnel. If he was right, it was worth the risk.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	9. The Journey North

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 9: The Journey North

* * *

Sokka glared at the sticks in his hands, tongue sticking out the corner of his mouth as he once again rubbed them against each other vigorously, blowing on them with desperate heaves as a thin wisp of smoke rose from between. Only to dissipate a moment later when his hands and lungs grew tired. He dropped them in frustration on the pile between the stones, growling.

"Oh come on, can't I do anything right tonight?"

"You really want us to answer that one, don't you?" Katara snorted, helping Zuko and Iroh set up the tents. The former watched him with no-nonsense serious business written across his face, the latter with wry amusement.

"Well instead of making wisecracks over there, you _could_ try helping," he pouted.

"Sokka? I'm a _Water_bender. You want me to put your nonexistent campfire out?"

"You still have hands, yanno."

Zuko rolled his eyes, leaning the tent support against a nearby tree. "Oh for Laozi's sake..." He struck stance, launching a tiny pinpoint of a fireblast at the sticks.

Sokka shrieked, spinning out of the way and rounding on him once he was sure he wouldn't get singed. "What the hell do you think you'r--!"

The unmistakable crackling and smell of burning wood made him turn around, a hearty blaze greeting him with that bright orange glow and enveloping warmth. He stared for a few moments, before turning back to Zuko, who had moved on to the task of securing the tent supports.

"...That's useful."

Iroh smiled, turning to Katara and Zuko. "If you two can handle this, I'll have the tea and supper ready by the time you're done."

She nodded, grabbing the rope to secure the supports' meeting at the top, while he started pulling out the heavy tent covering. It seemed Fire Nation tent-making was a lot simpler than her own people. No four-corner things with a covering out front to stand under in the rain, no large two-room tents if you were lucky enough to know how to build it... Just a simple meeting of four large sticks tied together at the top -- with enough room for the cooking fire's smoke to escape, of course -- and a covering of heavy skin attached with hooks and fasteners to the rope holding the supports. Maybe a floor if they thought about it, which Zuko obviously did as he was fastening it to the supports underneath and pitching it to the ground.

"Crude, but effective," she murmured, hooking the covering through one of the spaces between the rope. He looked up at her from securing the supports on the bottom so the whole thing wouldn't blow down if they sneezed wrong.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You saw ours back at my village. Not the easiest things to put up. They look great, but you can't break for camp less than two hours before nightfall or you're screwed. And if it's raining, forget it." She sighed, kneeling down to help him after getting the top secured. "You can put yours up in a hurry if you had to. Gives you more time before dark to travel. Pretty efficient, no?"

He averted his gaze to the spike he was driving through the floor of the tent. "It's nothing to do with my people. It's a military thing. You _have_ to be able to make and break camp as quickly as possible, because it could mean your life or the lives of other soldiers if you aren't where you should be on schedule."

She frowned, watching him as he drove in a second spike. "...I see."

He wiped the back of his hand across his forehead, standing up to survey the structure. "That should do it."

"Mmm. Tea sounds good right now, too."

A lopsided grin crossd his lips. "I believe our specials today are black lychee, white jasmine, and green spring cherry."

She returned the look. "Ohh, the white jasmine sounds lovely. I'll take a double shot with honey."

"Well, since we're so close to closing, you can have that cup on the house. Enjoy, and we hope to see you again soon," he said, bowing low to her.

She covered her mouth, giggling into her hand and having to grab a nearby tree branch for support. He smiled, watching her. She had a pretty laugh, he decided. Or at least one that didn't sound like she'd just stepped out of a horror play.

"Dinner's up!" Sokka called from the fire, as Iroh ladeled soup from the cooking pot into bowls for each of them. Zuko sat cross-legged in front of his, picking it up to blow on it before taking a sip. Katara followed suit, but went for her tea first, sighing contentedly.

"So..." Sokka started, looking a little nervous at bringing up an actual subject of seriousness. "Fastest way to the Northern Air Temple? Northwest? Any takers?"

Iroh set his soup down, reaching into the supply bag and pulling out a leather map scroll. He unraveled it, pointing to Ba Sing Se and running his finger up from it slightly. "We're here, and the Northern Air Temple is here." He slid his fingertip to the left, tapping the spot.

"Then...shouldn't we be heading that way?"

Zuko's brows narrowed. "Not necessarily." He ran his finger up the map from Ba Sing Se, stopping at the land's edge. "The northern coast is closer to us."

"Unless you're planning to dog-paddle through the shallows, I don't see how that's an advantage."

Iroh smiled. "Sometimes, the most direct route is not the quickest."

Zuko nodded. "If the temple's been captured, there would have to be a supply line coming in. And most likely, that line would be coming in by sea."

"And that helps us why?"

"The Fire Navy has the fastest ships in the world. It would take a lot less time to sail around than cross land on foot."

"But the line would be coming from the west, wouldn't it?"

"Not really," Iroh countered. "The Fire Nation controls Omashu. Rather than send supply lines upriver where they can be attacked and blocked off, it would make more sense to send them by land across the desert, then by sea past the Eastern Air Temple and Ba Sing Se. There would be plenty of ships skirting the coast."

"I don't mean to rain on your Fire Festival or anything," Katara ventured, "but I doubt you have the authority to obtain a ship right now."

Zuko dug in the pile of blankets and clothes beside him, pulling out one of his broadswords. "This is all the authority I'll need."

"We're going to steal one?" Sokka translated, quirking a brow.

"Mmm. I prefer the term 'commandeer.'"

"It's still stealing," Katara frowned.

"I know. 'Commandeer' just sounds better."

"And how do you propose we go about it?"

"Fire Navy supply vessels always travel in pairs. One with the cargo, the other for defense. It's a simple matter of sinking one and boarding the other."

"You have _got_ to be kidding. That's simple?"

"Of course it is. I said 'simple,' not 'easy.'"

Sokka just stared at him. "I'm beginning to think insanity runs in your family."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

It was late night when Zuko finally woke for his watch, having put away three bowls of spring onion soup and more tea than he knew he really should've. Although it was that nice sleepy tea that always made him wake with a clear mind instead of being more tired than when he went to bed. The thought crossed his mind that he should ask his uncle to make that more often. Followed by the thought that he absolutely did not want to turn into another tea addict. Serving it was bad enough.

He threw off the covers, pulling on his tunic and ducking out of the tent, to find Sokka still sitting up by the fire. He hung back a minute, studying the boy's face. Expression heavy with that deep-thought blankness as he clutched his teacup, sipping at what smelled like Iroh's prized ginseng, thick blanket draped over his shoulders to keep out the late-night chill.

He sucked in a breath, barely speaking over the sound of the flames. "Why didn't you wake me?"

Sokka shrugged, taking another sip. "Can't sleep. No sense in waking you if I can go a few more hours, is there?"

"And you'll only trust me if I'm unconscious."

"That, too."

He sighed, wondering not for the first time why he was even bothering. "I busted you out of Dai Li custody when I could've saved my own skin and just left with my uncle. I've had so many chances to kill you, it's ridiculous. But you are free, and you're still alive, and I haven't run off on you. What more do you want?"

"To be honest? Nothing. What I want is for you to just leave us the hell alone, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen. You're useful, at least, and I'll tolerate you for that. But don't waste your energy trying to get on my good side, because there's no way in hell that you or any of your kind will ever succeed."

Zuko came up closer, taking a space beside him. "You lost someone to the Fire Nation, didn't you?"

Sokka turned back to stare at the flames, lips set in a line.

He sighed, bowing his head. "I can't bring them back to you. Nothing can. All I can do is make sure you don't join them any time soon."

Sokka didn't move for a long time, but simply stared into the fire as it reflected off his cold, glassy gaze. As though his mind was already a million miles away and running fast. The pads of his fingers whitened on the teacup, and for a minute Zuko thought he might break it in his grip. But he didn't. Instead, he knocked back the last of his tea, standing up hard enough to roll the log he was sitting on back a bit. The blanket tightened about his shoulders as he headed for his tent without an answer.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Dawn seemed to break way too soon as far as Katara was concerned, yawning as she helped to break camp and pack up all their belongings. It never really occurred to her just how much stuff they had until it all had to be crammed into smaller spaces. With Appa that wasn't an issue, because they had ten tons of bison to pile everything on. Being on foot didn't have that luxury.

Sokka was unusually quiet as he brought up the tail, letting her go ahead of him and behind Zuko while Iroh took the lead. She chanced a few frowning glances at him, noting that his expression didn't change at all, even as the sun climbed higher above the trees. The afternoon heat was back full force before noon, making them need to stop and rest after only a few hours of walking.

She sat back against a tree, taking a long draught from her waterskin and wiping her arm across her soaked forehead. "This is brutal. How do people around here stand it?"

"They're used to it," Zuko muttered, taking a drink from his own skin. "It's not all _that_ bad. Least not to people who didn't grow up on an oversized ice cube." He snorted. "If you have trouble with this, Summer in my country would melt your flesh off."

She pursed her lips at him. "I think I'll pass, thanks."

"You'll have to do it at some point if you expect to win this war. Might as well start toughening up."

Now it was her turn to scoff. "Oh right. Like you would survive a Winter in my homeland."

"Fortunately for me, being able to withstand subzero temperatures for months on end won't be necessary to defeat the _Fire_ Nation. You, on the other hand, aren't so lucky."

"When you're done arguing about whose is bigger, you can join us up the trail any time," Sokka groused.

They both looked at him in indignation, then snorted at each other, moving to catch up to their two companions who had already started forward without them. She downed one more sip of water before hurriedly replacing the skin at her belt and getting to her feet. Zuko brought up the tail behind her as she fell into step beside Sokka, whose expression hadn't changed all morning from its frozen mask of annoyance.

"Is there a reason you're being an utter grouch, or are the stars just aligned wrong today?"

"I'm not being a grouch."

"You're snapping at me."

"I'm not snapping!"

"You just did."

"Oh for the love of Momo will you just leave me alone already?" he barked.

She tugged at his shirt, glaring. "Not until you tell me what's eating you. Or am I not allowed to be concerned about my brother now?"

He shoved her hand away, looking ahead. "You should know by now when I don't want to talk about it."

"Sokka...I do it because I'm _worried_, ok? Not to be a pain in the ass."

"Yeah well, you're doing a bang-up job on the latter." He didn't wait for an answer, hiking quickly ahead of her to keep pace with Iroh. She slowed a bit, sighing and staring back at the ground, hardly noticing Zuko's shadow and feet catching up to her.

"What's he on about?" he asked quietly.

She shook her head. "I think I know. But...I'd rather have him tell me himself. I hate it when he gets like this."

He watched her for a moment, before looking back up to where Sokka was picking his way through the underbrush. "You...worry about him a lot."

She looked up, as though he'd just told her she was wearing a braid and a blue dress. "Of course I do. He's my brother."

That made him frown, looking back at the ground thoughtfully. She arched a brow, studying his face. "What is it?"

He shook his head, and for just a moment she could swear he looked sad. "...Nothing."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

It was hardly more than another uneventful day's march before the cliffs of Ba Sing Se's northern coast stood under their feet, ice blue ocean sprawling off toward the horizon while impressive waves crashed against the base of their perch. Zuko shielded the glare of the setting sun with a flattened palm, wind rustling their clothes as he scanned the water.

"Any sign of our meal ticket?"

He shook his head. "Not ye-- Oh speak of the Devil..."

They were less than two miles off shore, cruising like a pair of sea serpents, acrid black smoke rising from their stacks and black steel hulls glinting red in the sunset. Katara and Iroh caught up to either side of him as he stared them down, murmuring. "A cargo ship and a corvette escort. We'll be a skeleton crew after we take it over, but this shouldn't be too difficult."

Katara's eyes narrowed. "I can handle the sinking part myself. The trick will be getting over there without tipping them off."

Iroh stroked his chin for a moment, thoughtful. "To put it simply, we need a way to make ourselves unseen until we're ready to strike."

"How can we avoid being seen with nothing to hide us but miles of ocean?" Zuko asked, feeling something in him sink a bit.

Sokka looked out at the two ships, muttering under his breath. "We use what we've got."

Zuko blinked, giving him a look as though he'd swallowed seawater. "I thought _I_ was the crazy one around here."

Katara stepped to the cliff's edge, looking down at the water. "If we can get something to stand on, I can take us within range to get the drop on them. Shouldn't be too hard."

Zuko blinked, turning to Sokka. "Do I want to know?"

He snorted. "It's my sister. Whenever she has a plan? It's just better not to ask."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

About ten minutes later found them gathered onto a crude raft of bound tree trunks, hurtling through the water at a dizzying speed. Katara stood at the head of it, bending them forward at a nice clip while the others tried desperately to get their sea legs. Water rushed by on all sides, over their heads against the round ice casing she'd created for the top of the craft. The rest of them hung on for dear life, crouching and clinging to the trunks as they sped along below the surface.

"I don't see how not asking would've made this less crazy," Zuko grunted, trying his best not to slip and faceplant, as splinters in the face did not sound particularly pleasant.

"Oh it wouldn't have," Sokka answered. "But you know what they say about anticipation..."

"Yes, I do. And it's a load of bull."

"We're almost there," Katara warned, and they felt their speed reducing as she began to calm her movements. "When I give the signal..._jump_."

Zuko nodded, hoping this wouldn't end nearly as badly as he was imagining.

She stopped the raft a safe distance from either vessel, concentrating on the much larger cargo ship and starting to go through those techniques he remembered from the Northern Siege, and for a moment his heart raced at the thought of being encased in a ball of solid ice so tight he could barely breathe, let alone move.

Outside the the thin shell of their impromptu seacraft, the ocean itself obeyed her.

He could barely see them at first, thin poles of ginting crystal, close enough to the surface to catch the filtering sunlight. And with each sweep of her arms, they grew. Until two gigantic spears of ice lay in wait ahead of the unsuspecting ship. He felt a sick knot form in his gut for a moment, thinking of what was in store for his countrymen on the surface.

She swept her arms. Hard. The spears followed.

He about felt the shudder as they punched through the ship's hull, and she fought to hold their position amid the water rushing in, eventually propelling them around the leading edge of the corvette escort. He knew they were safe, but that didn't make the sight of a ship's bilge filling with seawater any less disturbing.

The raft below them suddenly lurched up with the force of the water, ice casing melting away to reveal the black metal hull of the vessel in front of them, wind suddenly tugging at their clothes like it hadn't been able to do before. He shivered, chancing a look up as they rose past the railing, the thought of what they were about to do barely having time to sink in before Katara yelled the command and the water lift disappeared from under the raft.

He jumped as instructed, landing on the metal deck, shock running from his ankles to his hips. The others joined him a moment later, just in time as the rather surprised crew turned to receive them, swords drawn and stances struck.

"Well, if it isn't the two greatest traitors of our time, in person," one of them sneered, advancing with a drawn saber. "Can't say I haven't been waiting to bring back your heads."

"You'll have to wait a bit longer," he answered, drawing his broadswords. "Maybe you'll have a chance to settle it once you hand this ship over to me."

"And why on earth would we want to do that?"

"Because if you don't," Katara said, "you're going to have a bit of trouble on your hands. I'm sure you don't want that."

"Trouble?" he sneered. "From a couple of Water Tribe peasants, a retired general, and a banished prince? You're all so very, very precious." He shot a hand forward, palm blazing. "I'll be more than happy to prove you wrong, little girl."

She struck her stance, flinging a lightning-fast whip of water that Zuko just barely had time to avoid himself before it struck three of the men facing them onto their backs. The leader pulled himself back to his feet, seething.

"Kill them all."

Zuko leaped back over an incoming fireblast, releasing one of his own as he landed. His opponents dodged the carpet of flames, ducking under a second blast from Iroh as they advanced. He felt Katara's shoulder backed against his, Sokka's against the other.

"We just need to keep them occupied," she said. "This isn't going to take long."

"Believe me, I don't think we'll have any trouble in that department."

A moment later proved him right as she turned to meet a fire whip with a quickly-bended ice shield, freezing the water when it melted into a razor-sharp spear and hurling it at the soldier's head. He ducked it easily enough, throwing another blast her way, which she spun to avoid. That didn't stop him from leading her with subsequent shots, one making her bend her back flat with a bit lip as it seared the air above her face.

Zuko was busy deflecting swordblows from those who weren't benders, spinning and swinging and cutting down his fair share. Mostly knocking them out of the way toward Iroh, who was busy dealing out rather fiery pain. And that didn't count the ones he kept off Sokka's rather exposed back, gritting his teeth in frustration. Every so often he stole a glance to the cargo ship, waiting for the cue Katara was expecting.

Sokka avoided the brunt of one of those blows with a surprisingly dextrous swerve, sucking in a breath as the blade grazed above his hip. Only to have another whistle toward his neck with a clang as Zuko blocked it. He took the opportunity to duck under the struggling blades, skidding across the deck and grabbing the sword of an unconsious crewman. And in just enough time to meet another swing with a surprisingly strong block.

He flung the man off him, striking a low, ungainly stance as he came back for a second hit. The blow this time sent a sharp pain up his arm as the force of it bent his wrist at an angle it shouldn't, making him grunt and grit his teeth against it. He dodged to the side, aiming a lucky swing for the man's helmet and landing the blow before his opponent had time to move.

It was then that they heard it.

Shouts of distress from the neighboring deck, and the sound of buckling steel. Zuko turned as he ducked under a fireblast to see sailors scrambling for the lifeboats while their captain directed them. Their opponents took equal interest, watching in horror as the vessel began to tilt on its prow, water splashing up over the deck as it neared the surface.

"What the hell...?"

Katara grinned. That smug little smirk that Zuko found himself starting to like when it wasn't directed at him. "That vessel will be underwater in the next twenty minutes. The ice spears that sunk it are set to pierce the bow of _this_ one, just below the water, in about five minutes at your current speed. If you don't want the same fate as your buddies over there, I suggest you hand over the ship like you were asked to before."

"You're bluffing."

"Try me. Go ahead and look."

He shifted his eyes nervously, before barking at one of his men. "You. Go do it."

The soldier swallowed hard, inching over to the railing and leaning over to peer into the water. His shoulders hunched with a grimace, shaking as he stood up again to face them all.

"Well?"

"She's...She's not bluffing, Sir."

He turned back to her with a sneer. "You're crazy. Where would that leave you? You wouldn't damage a vessel you wanted, now would you?"

"Of course I would. Unlike you, I can patch it or escape if I need to, any time I please." Her smile widened. "You're out of your element. The ocean is _mine_."

The sounds of the the other crew abandoning ship seemed to enforce her point as the two of them stared each other down, grin to scowl, while the vessel behind her continued to tilt into the waves. Until finally his weapon hit the deck with a clatter. The rest of them followed suit, raising their hands in seething humiliation once they were empty.

"This isn't over," he snarled.

Katara chuckled, and Zuko felt a shiver chase down his back at the sound. "It will be soon enough."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Iroh watched the lifeboat with the former crew in it head off toward the shore along with the survivors from the submerged cargo ship, sighing as the others behind him started to make the initial sailing preparations. He took a long drink from his waterskin, shielding his eyes with a flattened hand and turning to look ahead of them from the ship's prow. To think, it had been months since he'd last been on a Fire Navy vessel, though sea legs were something one never lost once they were gotten.

Zuko stepped up next to him, swiping the back of his hand across his forehead. "We'll have to work twice as hard, but I think we can do this. Though it's not like we have a whole lot of options."

Iroh nodded. "What do you plan to do once we reach the temple?"

"We'll have to beach it and head up the mountain on foot. But at least we'll get there in days rather than weeks. Not to mention they're down a supply ship." He frowned, and Iroh recognized that lost look in his eyes all too easily.

"What is it?"

He closed his eyes. "Nothing important."

"Prince Zuko...You never frown over the trivial."

He let out a heavy breath, looking off toward the horizon. "Last time I was on a Fire Navy ship, I was headed to the North Pole to capture the Avatar, for the glory of my nation. Now I'm aiding him, against that nation. So much has changed, and I feel like I'm...not Zuko anymore."

Iroh smiled, resting a hand on his back. "In a way...you aren't. At least, not the same one your father tried to raise. Not the same one he banished. And most certainly not the same one he forced onto that miserable quest. You've chosen your own destiny. But...some things are still the same. You're still the Prince of the Fire Nation. The heir to the throne and the future of the country. No one, not even your own father, can take that away from you."

Something that tried to be a smile but didn't quite get there crossed his lips, and he bowed his head as his eyes closed again. "Thank you, Uncle."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Sokka stretched a bit as he headed out to the ship's prow for watch, cup of freshly brewed ginseng in hand and finding that an evening talk with the crazy old man, as they took care of making sure the ship was in working order and on course, did wonders for the nerves. And the tea was good, too. The thought that things would be a lot easier if he stuck around the angry jerk's uncle and just avoided the boy altogether seemed simple enough. But he knew that wasn't possible with their current setup. He could dream, though.

Yet that dream died at the front of his mind when he saw him standing at the prow, looking out ahead of them as the sun hung low and red, staining the sky pink with the fading light of day. Great. Just who he wanted to run into. Not that he had a choice, as they were the only four on this rig. Somehow, that just mad him more determined to avoid the guy, no matter how much common sense told him it was impossible.

"You're early," Zuko murmured, before he was within ten feet of him.

Sokka scowled, sipping his tea. "I'm getting some air, okay? It's downright claustrophobic down there."

"Hmm. It can get that way, yeah."

He arched a brow, having expected the boy to take it more personal than that. "Guess you would know all about it, huh?"

"Mmm. Not all." He squinted into the distance, picking up the spyglass and putting it to his eye.

Sokka frowned, watching him a moment before looking off to the side. "I've been on boats most of my life. But hell if I really knew how to sail one until a few months ago. My father was supposed to teach me..." He closed his eyes, trailing off. "Not that it matters now. His best friend did the hon--"

"Damn."

He snapped out of his memories, ears perked at the tone of Zuko's voice. "Huh?"

He lowered the spyglass, scowling at the horizon. "I was afraid of that."

"Afraid of _what?_" Sokka growled, caught between worried and suspicious. Zuko motioned for him to come up beside him, handing him the glass. He set his tea down and took it, giving a wary look between it and him.

Zuko scowled harder. "Good God, it's not going to bite you."

Sokka's eyes narrowed, not entirely sure of that but raising it to his eye anyway. He adjusted the lens for the farthest distance, focusing until the view became clear enough.

Of everything that could possibly not go their way, there was nothing worse that even his pessimistic streak -- winner of the Southern Water Tribe's Annual Championships for six years running -- could dream up. A sick knot twisted his gut, threatening to make bring up the tea he'd just drunk, and he lowered it with shaking hands and wide eyes.

"Oh _Hell_..."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	10. The Blockade

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 10: The Blockade

* * *

"You're kidding, right? Please say you're kidding."

Sokka shook his head. "I wish I could. You think I want to admit we're heading toward a wall of Fire Navy warships?"

"It's a big one, too," Zuko said. "About fifty ships. I was expecting one, but I didn't think it was going to be this huge. Or this far out."

Katara scowled at him, bracing her hands on her hips. "And you were planning to tell us about this _when?_"

Sokka shook his head. "We don't have time for that. We know it's there, and we have enough of a heads up to still do something. We can't waste it by arguing."

She pursed her lips at both of them, sighing. "So what's your call?"

"We do have one important point on our side," Iroh offered. "We're on a Fire Navy vessel, so we won't be attacked unless we give them a good reason to."

"But because they think we're Fire Navy, they also think we're part of the supply line," Zuko sighed. "Especially since we're alone. It's more likely they'd assume we salvaged the cargo from our companions and make us hand it over." He shook his head. "That can't happen. Above all, we can't be boarded, or we really are screwed."

Sokka looked over at him, wary. "I'm not gonna like this, am I?"

"Probably not," he said. "But I think you'd like a prisoner camp even less."

"Shoot, then. Just, yanno, not with fire."

Zuko turned toward the horizon, leaning on the rail. "We'll have to run the blockade. Sure, it'll give us away as a captured vessel, but at least we'll have a fighting chance."

"Are you crazy? They'll just send a ship to chase us and--"

"Not unless the Commander in charge wants his head on a pike somewhere," Zuko cut him off. "Number one rule of naval blockades is you never ever break them, unless the ocean itself makes you."

"And if they alert the temple force ahead of us..."

"Oh they will. But they'll be expecting us to come in by ship, and we'll be beached long before that."

Sokka sighed. "So I assume full speed ahead and don't stop for anything?"

Zuko nodded. "We have to get through."

Katara, who'd been conspicuously silent the whole discussion, finally spoke up. In that quiet, cryptic tone she always used when she had an idea everyone else would think she was crazy for. "If we're going to run it...then allow me to get the clutter out of our way."

"Clutter?" Sokka asked, brow arching. "What are you talking abou--...Oh no."

She grinned, heading to the prow of the vessel. "You all might want to grab on to something."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

The ocean stretched before them, polished stone carved with the wakes of warships and glistening as such in the last rays of sunlight. The young lookout siged as he perched at vessel's prow, facing the stern of the ship ahead of him but looking out east for the incoming delivery his captain had been expecting. A job that kept him above decks where he could do less damage, so the man had said, while wondering how desperate his country was that they would let worthless wastes of a good uniform on board.

He had half a mind to let them miss the supply ship out of spite. It wasn't as though he wanted to be in the military at all, but there was this thing called "drafting" going on, and he reckoned that jail would be a lot less pleasant than a warship. Not that warships were all that pleasant, but he at least had the freedom to leave of his own volition.

He adjusted the lens of his spyglass, focusing farther to scan the horizon for any sign of his watch target. No ships had come into view, but the water itself had started to turn choppy at the edge of his sight. As though there was approaching activity. His brow narrowed in intrigue, for it didn't look like it usually did with the approach of a ship. Instead of the characteristic "v-split" of a bow parting the waves, the water instead gathered _toward_ a single point. A peak above the dark mass of ocean, glinting like red wine in the first rays of twilight.

A sick knot twisted his gut. This was wrong. So very, very wrong. Even as he watched the strange shape approach, he felt paralyzed with the dread that something very bad was about to happen, and there wasn't a damned thing he could do about it.

Closer. It felt like it was moving at a sloth-bear's pace, but the curl of the waves told him the precise opposite. Whatever this thing was, it was racing toward them at a dizzying speed. He swallowed thickly, transfixed by growing horror as the shape itself became clearer, as well as the action of the water itself.

It was getting bigger.

Gathering more water, as though the very ocean were one giganting blanket lifted up by the force of a great storm. Yet the sky remained clear violet. Not a cloud. Only the water churning and curling itself into a building crest that turned his very blood to ice with the realization of what exactly he was looking at.

For that moment, he forgot how much he hated his captain. He forgot hpow much he hated the military. He even forgot how much he hated the slop they dared called food on this rig. All he could think about was a ship full of men below him who hadn't the slightest clue what was about to hit them. He knew of the danger, and he had to warn them.

He dropped the spyglass, swearing and running below decks with frantic screams.

"Ahoy! Rogue wave off starboard! Batten down!"

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Zuko clung to the railing as per the Waterbender's advice, and was never more glad to heed such warnings. The deck of the ship was already soaked with the water she'd gathered below them as she stood at the prow as though anchored, the ship rising higher with the force of it. Some part of him wished he'd known what he was getting into by teaming up with this pair of lunatics, while the rest of him preferred blissful ignorance and to cower against the railing waiting for someone to tell him when it was over. Yet for the life of him, he couldn't tear his eyes away from the sight. Her standing there bending her little heart out like some ancient sea goddess while water spilled over the deck as they gathered more altitude.

His ears were starting to pop, making him wince, as the ship teetered on the precarious support below. His stomach answered with a flip and sudden wave of sickness, and he had barely enough time to turn and lose what little he'd eaten into the sea. Retching and burning and his eyes stinging, afraid he might bust a rib but not daring to resist because that only made the inevitable heave more violent.

He chanced another look up when his body allowed him, in time for a slap of water to clean his face off. He spit it out with a sputtering cough, watching her between his soaked bangs. Her teeth were bared with the effort now, arms sweeping in tighter movements, drawing more and more water into the slowly building wave. That same water had already soaked the hem of her clothes, leaving her standing in a growing puddle. She heaved a particularly large gather of it under the ship, holding it for a few minutes with a visible strain before continuing.

It was...breathtaking. Of course, could attribute that to getting hit in the face repeatedly with sewater and having to actually hold his breath as such, but it was more than that and he knew it. The sheer amount of raw power this slight girl possessed, and the ability to use it without losing control was astounding. That she could make something as large and free and wild as the ocean itself _obey her_.

It was a lie, what they said back home. No Firebender he'd ever known, not even his sister, could hope to match this. Ever.

The ship began to lurch her prow heavenward, stern falling quickly as the wave slid under her belly. He clung tighter, cursing gravity and his weakened stomach for conspiring against him and at the same time reminding himself he had nothing left to bring up. The smaller waves hit him with even more force at this angle, threatening to tear him off the railing and sweep him to certain death.

A scream caught his attention, snapping him out of his thoughts, and he snapper up to see Sokka, who clung perched on the railing ahead of him, lose his grip to a particularly unforgiving wave. Falling toward him in panic, flailing, trying to reclaim a place on the rail before it was too late and all he would have would be the polished smooth hull of the vessel. And at the same time, Zuko felt his own grip slipping, drenched hands and shivering body finding it harder to hold on.

The reflex was automatic. There was no time to consider the risk. No time to be afraid of losing his own grip and sending the both of them plunging into the sea to drown. Only time to fling his hand toward Sokka and pray.

He caught it in a strong grip, bracing his other hand for the impact of the extra weight, taking it with a shudder but managing to keep his vice-like grasp on the metal. He looked down into the astonished boy's face for a moment, not trying just yet to pull the both of them up. "Are you all right?" he shouted over the roar of the ocean.

Sokka nodded, unable to yell back at him for the utter shock. Zuko looked back up at the railing, knowing he would never be able to hold on to him for that long. He bit his lip, then turned back to him. "I'm going to swing you back up! Catch the railing, then let go of my hand! Got it?"

Sokka nodded again, visibly bracing himself.

Zuko took the deep breaths he'd been trained to, starting to swing his arm first, and gradually bringing his full body weight into the motion. Wider and wider, trying to get Sokka's hand up to the rail. Almost. A hairsbreadth away. One more swing and...

Sokka's fingers closed on the metal, securing himself, before letting go of Zuko's. And Zuko himself let out the sigh of utter relief he'd been suppressing as the boy curled back up into a more secure position. He followed suit, turning back to watch Katara and fleetingly wondering if drinking the same water she and her brother shared was such a good idea.

It wasn't that he thought she was crazy, it was that...okay, he did think she'd lost her mind. But when one is clinging to the deck railing of a ship riding on the back of a sixty-foot wave, one tends to question the sanity of the person whose bright idea it was. Closing his eyes wasn't helping his still roiling stomach; not being able to see the motion throwing his balance off was actually making him feel worse. He dared a look up instead, enough to see her step back and sweep her arms up to pull the wave even higher.

Concentrating on that slim figure was the only thing keeping the rest of his lunch down.

She moved like a dancer, so much different from Firebending, with its quick, fierce jabs and long, whiplike stances. Hers were fluid and rounded and graceful, as if she herself was a stream of water. And capable of breaking him over her knee anytime she pleased.

He found the thought of it...alluring. Or he would have if he wasn't hanging on for dear life.

The ship began to pitch forward as the wave crested beneath it, and he winced for a moment at the sudden lurch of his stomach in response, clenching his throat to keep from throwing up again. His eyes opened to concentrate back on her movement rather than the ship's, fingers already gone numb from the freezing splashes.

And then, the moment he'd been waiting for and dreading.

The wave began to fall rapidly as she stomped and pushed forward, and he felt his heart pound at a sickening rate as she held the position, trembling all over and swaying on her feet with both the movement of the wave and very obvious exhaustion. A final splash swamped the prow, tearing his hands free and sprawling him onto the metal as they landed, the lurch of the ship knocking her backward and utterly off her stance.

He scrambled to his feet, skidding across the deck, catching her and kneeling to break both their falls. He tucked her safely up to his chest, turning around to shout to Sokka and his uncle. "We're through! Full speed ahead!"

They nodded, running off below decks to the helm.

He turned back to Katara, unconscious and deadweight against him, and just as drenched. He smoothed a lock out of her face on instinct, trying not to like the way the salty scent of ocean clung to her hair as he muttered under his breath.

"...Showoff."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Night had fallen swiftly, fortunately finding them all in dry clothes. Zuko himself carried her into what would've been the captain's bunk, laying her down on the bed and pulling the sheets over her, Sokka at his heels with a torch. He set it in the holder on the wall, sighing and wrapping his arms around himself with a shudder despite being warm and dry. Indeed, he hadn't stopped shaking since the ship had come back to the water, and Zuko didn't think he'd ever forget the look on the boy's face. Ashen skin and wide eyes and the corners of his mouth turned down in shock.

Now he simply looked tired. And worried. Not as pale as before but still having a sickly cast to him, though Zuko attributed that to leftover seasickness, as he himself was still feeling a little queasy.

"She'll be okay," he murmured, trying to reassure him. "She's just exhausted."

Sokka looked up, biting his lip. "I'll watch her."

Zuko frowned at him. "Are you sure? Because you look like you're about to keel over."

He shook his head vehemently, eyes glued to her face. "I'm sure. I'm fine. I just need to be here with her."

Zuko sunk down on the edge of her bed, frowning. "You need to get some rest. I know you're worried about her, but...you're shook up enough already, you shouldn't be expected to do all of this alone."

"Well who the hell else is gonna look after us?" he spat. "We don't have anybody!"

He didn't want to say it. He knew he shouldn't. The guy had just narrowly escaped death and didn't need to be reminded of the obvious that he'd already said he would never accept. But it was one of those cases where his mouth was quicker than his brain. "Yes you do. I'm on your side, you know." He braced himself for a good sock in the face, especially when Sokka's hands balled into fists.

But the seconds ticked by and it never came. His fingers opened and closed absently, curling as though around another hand, while he just kept staring at her.

"I know I'm asking a lot," Zuko murmured. "More than I probably should. But your nerves are shot and you'll be no good to her like this. I promise, she'll be all right. Please...trust me. Let me help."

He stood there for endless moments, looking as though he was running through every bad scenario he could possibly dream up. Most of which Zuko guessed ended with him being tossed overboard. But finally, he closed his eyes, letting out a breath.

"Don't make me regret this."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Zuko was almost glad to not have am hourglass in the room. Because watching the sands drip through that tiny hole would have put him to join Katara faster than anything else. Instead, he merely sat at the foot of her bed, propped up against the hard metal of the wall in the most uncomfortable position he could manage, having forsaken the blanket so the damp chill of late night might keep him awake. And it did, despite his body and mind's dragging protests.

She'd saved them. Watching over her was the least he could do.

The image of her at the prow of the vessel, commanding the sea itself to throw them past the wall of ships was permanently burned to a part of his mind he'd tried to keep from acknowledging. The part that was simply awestruck by just how easily this young woman could dash an entire nation's superiority complex to pieces against the cliffs. She hadn't been kidding. The ocean really was her element, and the thought was more than a little scary.

But now, she looked so peaceful. Laying there asleep, breathing softly under the blankets with her arm lying across her chest, looking so much younger than the battle-hardened warrior he'd grown so accustomed to seeing. He felt as though he was spying, seeing a side of her he by rights shouldn't be permitted to.

_Because I'm the enemy, even as I'm an ally_.

Though it was hardly true and he knew it. Yet that was easy to forget when he also knew the effort it took for her and her brother to trust him at all. Not that he blamed them, given the circumstances. He'd just run out of ways to prove where his loyalties lay, and it was frustrating. Even when she wasn't trying to, his sister's influence could still thwart him.

A soft sound caught his attention, and he snapped up to see her stirring. He moved up closer to her, resting his hand on her forehead. "It's okay, we're all safe. Don't try to get up."

She shifted under his hand, whimpering a little and pushing up from the bed. "N-No...please...please let me sit up, I have to..."

He bit his lip in hesitation, but complied, gently supporting her back and helping her to move. "Careful, there..." She was pale and shaky, worse than Sokka, with that telltale sunken look in her cheeks that told him flat-out that she was feeling awful. He quickly grabbed the wash basin normally used to splash one's face in the morning, having a hunch she would need it.

She proved him right a moment later, snatching it from him in a panic with a violent heave. He grimaced in sympathy, holding her hair back as she retched, dry heaving and panting until her body finally calmed itself. He cleaned her up carefully, giving her some water to rinse with and drink before leaving the room only to empty and clean the basin. When he returned, she lay on her side, curled in a ball and shaking, whining softly into the pillow.

"Make it stop...please..."

Something in his chest twisted painfully as he knelt next to the bed, anxious and worried and not really knowing what to do. "You still feel sick?"

She nodded, biting her lip. "Stomach...killing me...owwgod..."

He swallowed thickly, giving her hand a squeeze. "Stay right here, I'll go get Uncle." He immediately felt stupid for saying it, even as he dashed out of the room and up to midship. Of course she wasn't going to move. She probably thought he was being an idiot, and at this point he half agreed.

"Uncle!" he shouted, skidding onto the deck.

Iroh turned, immediate concern in his eyes at the look Zuko knew he must be wearing. "What is it, Prince Zuko?"

"It's the girl," he said shakily. "She's... She just threw up and now she said her stomach hurts like hell..."

Iroh shook his head, muttering. "Far too early for her to be awake. Here, come with me."

Zuko followed him below decks to the kitchen, hands clenched into fists to keep them from shaking. "You know what's wrong with her?"

His uncle nodded, searching quickly through his tea stash until he found the cake he was looking for. "Bending Sickness." He broke off a small piece, starting to grind it up into a fine powder, then filling the kettle. "It's not serious, but she'll be miserable until it passes."

"What is it?"

"It happens when a Bender overexerts beyond his or her limits. The stomach is the center of a person's energy. The Sea of _Chi_, like I told you. When the flow if that energy is increased too quickly, the Bender's _chi_ is thrown out of balance and the stomach gets rather unhappy." He set the kettle in his palm, breathing in deep and heating the water. "What she did back there would be enough to give far more advanced students a severe case of it."

Zuko looked at the floor, toes curling in his shoes. "How does it go away?"

"With rest," Iroh said, pouring the water into the teacup. "She needs to let her energy rebalance itself. That usually takes a full day. This tea will help her fall and stay asleep." He handed the cup to Zuko carefully. "Don't worry, nephew. These things just take time."

Zuko nodded, feeling only a little less worried as ge made his way back to Katara's room. Relieved to find she hadn't thrown up again, he set the tea on the nighttable. "C'mon, Uncle made you some tea to put you to sleep. He said you just have to rest until it passes."

She shivered, very carefully moving to sit up with his help. He pressed the cup into her trembling hands, watching her drink and trying to make the anxious flutter in his own stomach calm down. She finished it soon enough, laying back down and curling up beneath the covers as he tucked them over her. Her eyes were already half-lidded, breathing starting to slow and deepen.

"You... That was some really impressive bending," he murmured, smoothing the covers. "Just...um...don't do it again. I don't think _my_ stomach could take another one, either." She smiled sleepily, at him, muttering one word in reply before drifting off.

"Wuss..."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

It was shortly before dawn when Sokka finally wandered in, less pale and sick and far more relaxed than before, evident even in his steps. Zuko himself barely looked up, having found it even more difficult to stay awake with the relief that she was going to be okay. He snapped up at the hand on his shoulder. "O-Oh! ...'Morning? I think."

He nodded. "It will be soon. How is she?"

"Ok, I guess" Zuko murmured without really thinking. "Uncle gave her tea to knock her out. She woke up miserable and sick earlier..."

He blinked, tensing. "What do you mean sick?"

"She overdid it on the bending. It's not serious, she just woke up too early. He said she's gotta sleep for a day." His own eyes drooped closed for a minute, unable to stop himself. "I swear, I was right here. She's sleeping like a baby..."

That hand on his shoulder relaxed a bit, and he didn't have to turn around to know Sokka was looking between him and his sister. "It's...It's okay. I'll take over. It's your turn to get some rest."

"I can go a few more, I'm fine..." he yawned.

Sokka sighed. "Bullshit. Do I have to drag you there myself? Go on."

His body was in full agreement, even as his exhausted mind warred with it. "All right, all right. Basin's in the corner if she needs it. Doubt she's gonna, but it's there just in case..."

"Thanks." He pointed to the door. "_Bed_. Now."

Zuko nodded, shuffling to the first large bunk, only bothering to pull his shirt off before climbing into bed, blacked out and asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	11. Appa

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 11: Appa

* * *

Aang tried as much as he could to quell the flutter in his stomach as he followed Shen down what felt like an endless tunnel, but if his insides weren't shivering, his limbs were. More out of good anticipation than fear. Toph trusting him was more than enough for him, considering how much she trusted people anyway even when she could tell they were lying. If the "friend" Shen mentioned was who he suspected, this was a risk he was more than willing to take. 

He looked over at Toph now, murmuring under his breath. "You picking up anything?"

She shook her head. "The chamber's kind of far, though. But he's taking us the right way at least."

Aang gulped, looking ahead of them again. The tunnel was definitely widening. He could see that in the firelight from Shen's hand. And the air itself was getting warmer, like it always got if he stood too close to someone. Not exactly uncomfortable, but not the same as the heat of a candle. This felt...alive. Charged with a familiar energy that drew him as nothing else in his life ever had. He walked faster, almost on Shen's heels as the tunnel finally opened up into a yawning cavern.

He sucked in a breath. Even with all he'd seen, it was hard to imagine this kind of vastness harbored right underneath a bustling metropolis, even if it was almost two hundred feet down. The far wall was only visible because of the phosphorescent crystals sprouting from it, bathing the room in a wash of blue-green and deep shadow. Despite the cool colors and depth of the cave and lack of a heat source other than Shen's hand, it was warmer than the tunnel.

He looked up, biting his lip and his heart thudding with anticipation. "Is this it?"

The man nodded, waving his hand and brightening the flame a bit. As though trying to attract attention. Aang followed his gaze to the far end of the cavern, rubbing his eyes in the darkness.

It was there. Large, slow, calculated movement, and a soft rustle against the rock. His heart gave a slight, giddy flutter of anticipation, fairly pounding when he got a good look at the creature as it moved into the blazing light from Shen's hand. He knew that ten-ton furry shape anywhere. Didn't need to see the arrow on its head. Just the glint in his eyes was enough. With a happy squeal, he sprung across the cavern in a flying jump, landing square against Appa's side and trembling as he nuzzled into the thick fur.

"You're back," he sniffled, not even caring that he was getting his friend's coat all wet as that familiar lowing purr answered him. "I missed you so much, buddy."

"He missed you, too," Shen confirmed, smiling softly as he came up behind him, Toph in tow. "If he could talk, I swear he would've asked me where you were, if you were okay. Too bad I wouldn't have been able to tell him."

Aang turned around, wiping his eyes. "H-He was down here the whole time and nobody could spare a word?"

Shen sighed. "It was too risky, Avatar. Soldiers like us are...not welcome in the Earth Kingdom. Or anywhere for that matter. The authorities would have us executed immediately, and the Fire Nation would have us brought home for interrogation and very probable torture."

"It's complicated."

Both of them turned to the voice, confused. Aang knew it sounded familiar, but couldn't place exactly who it belonged to, mind too clouded with elation at seeing his friend again.

"Up here," she said, and he found himself gazing up into that signature makeup pattern as she perched atop Appa, Momo sitting on her shoulder and trilling excitedly.

"Suki!" he called, waving to her. She chuckled, sliding down Appa's side to the ground.

"We got separated during the chase. Thanks for noticing."

Aang blushed, turning to Toph, who frowned thoughtfully. "So how do we find the Earth King's chambers now that we have Appa?"

She arched a brow at him. "You're gonna bust into his bedroom with a flying bison."

"Well...yeah." He paused, frowning. "I'm not leaving him behind if that's what you mean."

"I don't know if that's such a great idea," Jin's voice called from halfway across the cavern, making all of them look up as she hobbled toward them using another soldier's _bo_ as a walking stick. "There's much you need to hear before you go rushing off to do your thing." She frowned. "I asked you to trust me blindly before, and well...that was pretty stupid of me given your position. You can't go trusting anyone without a reason, and I think it's time you know why."

Shen was at her side in moments, draping her arm over his neck to support her. "I think we should go to the camp for this one, then. Trust me, you'll all want comfortable seats."

"What about Appa?"

Shen smiled. "He can join us. You two need not be separated any longer."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

A short while later found them near the back of the Taifeng camp where the tunnel widened, Appa curled up against the rocky wall, surprisingly content for being underground though Aang suspected the reunion was part of it. The rest of them circled the campfire, watching Shen put on the kettle for a pot of tea while Jin arranged her injured foot on a piled-up blanket.

"So..." he ventured. "What's this about...um...not trusting people?"

Jin pulled a cloak tight about her shoulders, looking up at Shen, who nodded. She turned back to Aang. "I know you still have a lot of questions about me. How I knew where Zuko was going. How I know about the tunnels. Why I know so much about the White Lotus. I can't answer them all, but I'll tell you enough." She sighed, staring into the flames.

"My father was a high-ranking member of the White Lotus before he died. One of the projects he oversaw was to create a map of these forgotten passages, as the Society was planning to use it again as headquarters once they got word of the Avatar's return. For almost sixty years, they've been forced out by the growing power and influence of the Dai Li, but they feel it's possible to subvert it now with the aid of the Avatar himself. I'm part of that project, and have been for the last three years."

"But the Dai Li aren't afraid of me," Aang told her, frowning. "Heck, they locked me up."

Jin nodded. "But they didn't kill you or even try to brainwash you. That's more grace than they've shown any of Ba Sing Se's citizens."

Shen took the kettle off the blaze once it started to sing, pouring them each a cup of what smelled like dark oolong. "I met her father almost a decade ago after General Iroh's siege was finally broken. In exchange for political asylum, my men were charged with creating the map for the operatives to use."

Toph's brows narrowed. "If you two are White Lotus and you're on our side, why all the secrets?"

"Because of the plan," Shen said. "If word got out of what we were planning to do, the Fire Nation would no longer care about occupying Ba Sing Se. Complete destruction would be their only goal. The lives of millions hinge on absolute secrecy. We're already taking a huge risk just by telling you."

"Then why tell me at all?"

"Because you have to know," Jin said. "You need to be aware that this fight is not just yours. And that there will be more to ending this war than taking out Fire Lord Ozai. The White Lotus has been planning for centuries, passing down its intentions for centuries through nothing but oral tradition. All secrets die with the members. Just as my father told me, so I tell you. Because if I die, someone else must know and be able to help carry it out."

Aang frowned more deeply, looking at the ground. Never was he more unsure of his task than at this very moment. Talking to just two of the many who would come to depend on him to know what he was getting into. The Avatar, the savior of the world, the Bridge to the Spirit World, the one who would restore the balance that had been upset for a hundred years.

Him. A twelve-year-old child.

He wasn't Avatar Roku. He wasn't an old wise man with the experience of so many years to go back on when he needed help. He was Aang. A mere boy so afraid of his own future that he would seal himself away and leave the world itself to fall into ruin.

His frown deepened to one of determination as he finally raised his eyes to meet theirs again. "I let the world down once. The disappearance of the Avatar...my running away...was the trigger that let Fire Lord Sozin make his move. I'm not gonna let you all down again. If you're going to care enough to stand behind me, then I'm going to care enough not to let myself fall."

Toph smiled. And though she said nothing, he knew she was proud.

Shen nodded. "We are behind you, Avatar. In more ways than you could possibly imagine."

"In which case..." Aang went on, "I think it's only fair that I give up my secrets, too. You found my bison and returned him to me. I think I at least owe you the reason I'm down here." He sucked in a breath, determination making his face harden.

"This is the Year of the Comet. The same one that Sozin used to start the war will pass over again at the end of Summer. If we don't end the war on our terms before then, Fire Lord Ozai will definitely end it on _his_. We have one shot in our favor. We found out through Won Shi Tong's Library that there's a total eclipse scheduled to happen before the arrival of the Comet. I need to tell the Earth King. Because if there was ever a time to strike the Fire Nation, it would be then, when their power is compromised."

Jin and Shen looked at each other, then back at him. "No wonder you want to bust in there with the bison."

Toph nodded. "We have to convince him. There's no way we can make this happen without the Earth Kingdom's support. I mean, if they all _want_ to die a fiery death and be first against the wall when Ozai starts lining up prisoners, great. But the rest of the world isn't too keen on it, yanno? We like living."

"We're currently almost three-quarters done with the full map," Shen said. "While I can tell you where we suspect the Earth King's chamber passage is, I can't confirm anything." He sighed. "The door it leads to requires Earthbending to open it, I'm afraid."

Toph smirked. "You just found the absolute best person for the job, buster." She stood, bowing low. "Toph Bei-Fong, Greatest Earthbender in the World, at your service."

Shen chuckled, returning the gesture. "Pleased to make your acquaintance, young Lady."

Aang smiled a bit, before turning serious again. "Just one thing I need to know before qw go giving the poor guy the scare of his life." At their nod, he continued. "If the White Lotus has been around so long, why haven't they bothered to do anything about the war before now?"

Jin's face darkened, solemn. "Before now, there was nothing they could do. If you want revolution, you need change first. Since the start of the Yuan dynasty, there has been no direct heir that would've changed the course of the country or even tried to restore the balance before the fall of Fire Lord Rokan. The Lotus was so desperate to get an heir they could trust onto the throne that they even tried to get one of their own into the line of succession." She looked up, and he found himself cringing inside at the shine in her eyes.

"But they were outwitted by his brother. The one we call Fire Lord Ozai."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	12. Revelations

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 12: Revelations

* * *

Aang stared at her, blank and numb and simply not believing he could've heard what he just heard. The words themselves would not process. Not make sense. As though he was hearing them in another language. The fire's crackle filled the void so at least the silence wasn't completely deafening. But it was oppressive enough to still be uncomfortable, and the look on Jin's and Shen's faces didn't help at all. 

"Iroh...? Was supposed to rule the country for the White Lotus?"

Jin nodded, breaking that gaze long enough to sip her tea. "He's been a member of the society since before the Siege. Yes, he attacked us. But truth be told he didn't have much of a choice if he wanted to be seen as worthy of the crown. And even in his campaign, he wasn't unnecessarily ruthless as many of the other generals were."

Suki frowned, finally speaking up. "Then how did Ozai outwit them?"

"Through the assassination of Fire Lord Azulon," Shen replied. "That had been a plan of the White Lotus for a long time, to allow General Iroh to take the throne. But...It was carried out far too early. Originally, it wasn't supposed to happen until he'd returned home. But for some reason, Azulon was taken out while he was still at the siege." He sighed, sipping his own tea. "Ozai saw the opportunity and didn't hesitate to jump on it. He forged a deathbed request that Azulon be succeeded by his second son rather than his first."

Aang frowned, looking back at the fire. "He stole his brother's birthright. His country. Everything."

Jin nodded, setting her teacup down. "This didn't throw as big a wrench into things as it might have, but it still gummed up the works a bit. Getting Iroh on the throne now would mean not just killing off Ozai, but his children as well. And no way was Iroh himself going to let that happen. Instead, he opted to come home, and to train up Ozai's heir to take the throne when the time was right."

"So why can't we just get rid of the big shot and be done with it?" Toph asked.

"Because we have a slight problem," Shen said. "The heir we want to take over has been banished. Stripped of his birthright. As of now, he can't inherit the throne, and he would never be recognized as Fire Lord if he tried. Were we to take out Ozai...we'd be crowning Fire Lady Azula." He shivered visibly. "Trust me, that's the last thing the White Lotus wants to see happen."

"Above all," Jin said, " We have got to get that boy on the throne before his sister beats him to it. He's our only hope of truly winning. There's no use taking out Ozai if we're going to have someone _worse_ to deal with."

"I hate to be the wet blanket here," Suki said, "but I don't think he's ready to rule _anyone_."

Jin smiled. "Of course he isn't. Not now at any rate. But trust me, he will be by the time he gets there. Because he'll have to learn to be in order to get that far at all."

"He will be," Aang said, staring into his teacup. "It's his destiny to lead the Fire Nation back to what it was before the Yuan Dynasty. Just like it's mine to restore the balance between the Four Nations. To make it up to the world I let down when they were counting on me the most..."

Shen shook his head. "It's not your destiny to do it alone, Avatar. It wasn't fair for anyone to put that kind of burden on the shoulders of a child. It took us a hundred years, but we've learned our lesson. The rest of the world is not just depending on you to do all the work. We're behind you, to _help_ you. Because it's our fight as well."

Toph nodded, grinning. "We've got your back, Twinkle Toes."

Aang sighed, looking at them all with a mixture of admiration and relief, surprised at how humbled those words made him. He smiled, hoping the look on his face could say what he had no words for.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

It was late afternoon when Zuko finally woke again. Not that he was able to tell or anything since he had the shade to the porthole closed to keep out the sun. He only realized it when Sokka shook him gently, making him bolt upright with a strangled gasp and shudder. Sokka himself backed away in alarm, holding his hands up in a pacifying gesture.

"Whoa, easy there..."

Zuko looked over at him, feeling an immediate rush of relief sweep through his body and mind. He closed his eyes, resting his forehead in a trembling hand. "It's okay...m'fine." He didn't even think before the words were out of his mouth. "How is she?"

"Still asleep," Sokka replied. "Your uncle's with her now. She's woken up a couple times, but she isn't sick. Just tired."

"Good." He rubbed his temples, groaning softly. "Now it's just _my_ head that's killing me."

"Yeah," Sokka murmured, half to himself. "Should probably sleep more."

"Can't do that," Zuko shook his head. "Too much stuff to do. We're a skeleton crew as it is and we're down one until she recovers."

"I took care of the helm and the engine room already," Sokka said. "It's all right. We'll make it a few more hours until we beach. You just...you need to rest."

Zuko cracked an eye open, looking sidelong at him. The boy wasn't pale or shaky as he seemed to get whenever he was particularly frightened, but he definitely looked uneasy. As though there was some heavy weight on his mind that he was desperate to ignore by shifting such concerns to anything else he could find.

"Sokka?"

"Yeah?"

"What's wrong?"

Sokka shook his head. "Nothing. It's not important. We have bigger stuff to worry about."

Zuko sighed, turning to look at him fully now. "That doesn't mean the 'little stuff' isn't important. Something's bothering you."

He looked up, out the tiny strip of porthole between the shade. "This. All of this. Yeah, I know, it's war. War's fucked up and stupid by nature but...but I just have this really bad feeling about everything that I can't shake. I know my instincts are hit and miss, but...but I feel like I'm gagged and strapped to a barrel of blasting jelly and I'm watching the fuse burn down and I know this is going to blow up in our faces but I can't warn anyone..."

"You're afraid of what we'll find at the temple."

Sokka nodded. "The blockade means they've conquered it. They have all those facilities at their disposal now. And the Mechanist, provided they didn't kill him outright. The thought of what they're capable of now scares the hell out of me, yanno?"

Zuko nodded. "They're my people. I _know_ what they're capable of, and if they have a chance at this shock and awe attack, they won't waste it. But other than gathering information, there isn't a whole lot we can do. We need to know what's going on first. Then we can prepare accordingly. I know it's frustrating and it feels like we're helpless, but we really are doing the best thing we can."

"You really think your sister was telling the truth?"

Zuko sighed. "I don't know. Even when she's telling the truth, she twists it to her advantage. The thought that she's right is scary enough, but knowing it's got to be part of a bigger plan of hers is just as bad."

"You know, when I said I thought insanity ran in your family, I was _joking_." He paused. "You do know what a joke is, don't you?

Zuko looked him square in the eye. "Every joke has a punchline."

"Fair enough." He sighed. "So now what?"

"I'm tempted to hunt out the crew's baijiuu stash until we beach ourselves, but trust me, it's a bad idea. Call me a pansy, but if you're going to get drunk, you might as well do it on something that doesn't taste like bilgewater."

Sokka snickered, bringing a second wave of relief over him that the boy was beginning to relax a bit. "Any suggestions?"

"Palm wine. It's sweet, but that just means it packs a bigger punch in the long run 'cause you'll end up drinking more." He smirked. "Plus, it goes great with satay."

"Satay?"

"Grilled meat skewers. Spicy, but you get used to it. Especially if you're like me and you're used to putting fire flakes in your congee." He sighed heavily. "I haven't had any in ages."

Sokka blinked at him. "You...You people serve _meat_ on _sticks?_" He paused, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "Why are we at war again?"

Zuko looked back at him, stunned into silence more by the feeling than the comment that provoked it. It was a familiar sensation, but fuzzy. Like the memory of a dream that he couldn't quite recall the content of, only the emotion. He knew he'd felt like this before, but it was so long ago and so much had changed since then that he grew to think he'd forgotten how to do so anymore. But apparently, it wasn't nearly as difficult as he'd trained himself to think, for he felt the corners of his mouth tug upward in a smile.

And for the first time in so many years, he laughed.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	13. The Ultimate Weapon

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 13: The Ultimate Weapon

* * *

The next moon found Katara perched at the prow, spyglass in hand, wind keeping her hair off her face as she gazed out across the flat ocean. It was a relatively cool evening; Zuko himself had donned an overtunic before going off to the helm, which left her snickering inside at the boy's lack of constitution and recalling their conversation about native weather patterns with a kind of derisive glee. A bad habit, she knew, but she needed something to keep her occupied on watch.

She turned at the sound of footsteps behind her, though she could easily recognize Iroh's shuffling gait by now. "It's a lovely view, isn't it?" he asked, bearing a tray of what smelled like ginseng peach tea. She nodded, setting down the spyglass and resting her elbows on the deck railing.

"Yeah. Boring, but lovely."

Iroh chuckled. "I thought you might like some company out here while the boys take care of things."

She smiled. "Company sounds great. So does tea."

He knelt on the deck, setting the tray down as she followed suit. "It's good to see you feeling better. The both of them were so worried for you."

She frowned as she watched him pour her a generous cup. "Really? I know Sokka was, but he's my brother. Of course he'll worry."

Iroh shook his head. "Prince Zuko was rather concerned himself. He's never had Bending Sickness, never witnessed anyone else go through it. It's unpleasant enough when you know what's wrong, and far more nerve-wracking when you don't."

She sighed. "He was probably more worried about what Sokka would do to him if anything happened to me."

"Or he could just be concerned at seeing you in such obvious distress."

She sipped her tea, looking up to the horizon through the railing bars. "That would be a first. He's on our side, but I know he's not all that fond of us."

"I won't deny that he's done many things to hurt you. But he was a different person than he is now. He's been through a far more trying last few months than even he could have imagined. It's...changed his perception on a lot of things."

She rested her head down on one of the railing bars, heaving a sigh. "He told us some of what happened, why he did what he did. But...there's still a lot he's holding back."

"I know. And he has his reasons. It's just...hard for him to talk about."

She frowned, staring back at her tea for a moment and unable to help outright asking what she'd been wondering since she first saw the boy. A Firebender with a huge burn scar over his eye didn't make any sense; what good would a soldier with no depth perception do anybody, even if he was the prince?

"That scar..." she ventured. "How...How did he get it? I mean, I can't think of too many reasons for the Fire Nation to try and disable a perfectly good soldier in the middle of a war campaign."

Iroh sighed, closing his eyes for a minute as he sipped at his own tea. "I know it's not my place to say it. I was there when it happened, but it's his story to tell. And yet, I think it's something that would help you all better understand him if you knew. As I said, the boy has been through much, before his exile as well as after."

She bit her lip, looking at him. "I'm listening."

He sat back a little, taking in a deep breath. And just from the look on his face, she knew it was not an easy topic for him, either. "It started when he was thirteen, on his way to enter the military. And despite my advice, he requested to sit as an audience to a war meeting. At the council, one of the generals detailed a plan to use a legion of newly trained soldiers as a decoy to ambush an Earth Kingdom troop. In his words, 'what better to use as bait than fresh meat.' Zuko was the only one seated at that meeting who dared oppose it. Speaking out of turn, defying every rule of decorum, because the very idea of a plan with that little respect for the people it employed infuriated him.

"Fire Lord Ozai, also in attendance, did not waste the chance. He gave Zuko the ultimate reprimand: a challenge to an Agni Kai, a formalized fire duel. Zuko was ready, thinking he would face off against the general whose plan he opposed. What he didn't know was that it was his father's war room. Therefore the insult was on Ozai himself rather than the general. When Zuko saw his opponent was his own father, he forfeited the match and refused to fight."

She felt a sick knot form in her gut, having a feeling of where this was going but not wanting to voice it. Instead, she looked down at her hands nervously as Iroh continued.

"As punishment for what he saw as unconscionable weakness, his father burned him with his own hand. Gave him a permanent mark of dishonor and banished him from the Fire Nation. He had only one chance at coming back: were he to bring home the Avatar, a feat which niether his father nor grandfather had accomplished, he would be reinstated to his title."

Katara swallowed hard, looking up at him finally, her uneasiness evaporating into the kind of anger she'd felt toward only one other person in her entire life. "His own father? How could...how could _anyone_/i do that to their own child?"

"To be honest, Ozai barely even considered Zuko his son. He was an investment to the Royal Family more than anything, and the Fire Lord was not seeing much of a payoff with him as he was with his sister."

"I...I can't even articulate how _cruel_ that is."

"I know, child. But that's how it's always been for him. Everything he's accomplished, he's struggled for. Including the decision to help you now and leave everything he's ever known behind." He sighed. "As his father used to say, Azula was born lucky. Zuko was lucky to be born."

She looked back toward the water, feeling suddenly cold inside. And not the kind that a good cup of tea would take away, either. It was a hard, gut-twisting cold that left her shivering inwardly as bad as Zuko had been sans tunic. A kind of empathy she'd never felt toward anyone else.

Iroh set a hand on her shoulder, sighing. "It'll be all right, my dear. You'll see."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Sokka dragged his arm across his forehead as he closed the furnace, not so much for the heat as the stuffiness of the engine room. Despite the glow of the roasting coals, he still found the room dark and oppressive. More in a psychological sense than a physical one. While it was dark and closed in and generally made him feel like a vole-rat lost in its own burrow, it was actually quite large; the deep shadows were what made it feel so much smaller.

The sound of a hard boot knocking on the metal door made him turn, and he answered it to find Zuko bearing a tray of tea, two generous bowls of hot noodle soup, and a small plate of thin-sliced smoked meat. "It's not palm wine and satay, but I hope it'll do."

Sokka smirked. "As long as it's edible and not poisoned, it's fine by me. I'm starved."

Zuko nodded. "Wanna eat out here?"

"In the corridor?"

He shrugged. "Why not? It's not like we have a crew to worry about tripping over us. It's less stuffy and far more breathable."

Sokka barely paused a moment before following him. "Sold." He watched the boy set down the tray and start pouring the tea as they sat across from each other, with the hand of a server who would likely never forget that training for the rest of his life. "So...what _is_ for dinner, if not the Great Holy Duo?"

"I'm not sure what it's called, just that it's really, really good. It's shrimp broth with ginger and spring onion if that's what you're wondering, though."

Sokka smiled a bit, taking a taste of it. It was a lot lighter than the seaweed soup Gran-Gran used to make back home, and the broth itself was clear rather than having a layer of whale or seal grease on top. Though he supposed that was due to the absence of meat in the soup itself. "Not bad, not bad... S'funny, we don't really use much seasoning back home. But then, you don't exactly get herbs growing in the South Pole."

Zuko smiled back. "We're pretty big on the spices. Especially the hot ones, like ginger and red pepper. Takes some adjusting, though. Acquired tastes and such."

"I've never been one for spice. Had a date with fire flakes once, didn't end well. Thought I was gonna burn my lips off."

Zuko laughed. "I grew up on that stuff. Used to put it in my breakfast, until I started getting dirty looks. Apparently, it's bad form to put anything but white pepper or soy sauce in your congee."

Sokka made a face. "I think we had that stuff on Kiyoshi. It's...kinda gross." He chuckled nervously. "No offense or anything but there's something a little off-putting about drinking rice. Now, seaweed soup and seal jerky? There's a breakfast to live off of."

Zuko arched a brow at him. "Seal jerky? As in...you _eat_ seals?"

"Of course! Pretty tasty ones, too, depending on the wood you use. Maple works best. It's sweet, but still smoky enough."

Zuko grinned, handing Sokka a slice of the meat. "It's not seal, but cows can be pretty tasty, too. These are all hickory-smoked."

He snorted, tearing a piece off with his teeth. "As long as it's meat, I won't refuse it... Wow. You guys spice up your jerky, too?"

"Are you kidding? I told you, there's very little we _don't_ use spices on." He smirked. "I used to gross my mother out by putting fire flakes in my suncake at dessert. She could never understand it..." Sokka watched as his mirth melted into something not quite a frown, but not a happy expression, either.

"What's wrong?"

"Mmm. Nothing," he muttered quieting and starting on his own soup, but in that way that Sokka knew meant he was trying to keep his mouth full so he wouldn't have to talk. He shuddered inside at the memory of doing the same thing himself after that fateful raid years ago, avoiding conversation with his sister whenever he could.

"If it was nothing, you'd have no problem talking about it."

Zuko put down his chopsticks, turning and leaning back against the wall of the passage with a sigh. "It's...It's complicated."

He knew he had no right to ask, but he couldn't stop himself. "Is it about your mother?"

Zuko closed his eyes, letting out a heavy breath in answer.

"What happened to her?"

"I don't know."

Sokka frowned, setting down his half-eaten jerky. "What do you mean you don't know?"

Zuko sighed, bending a knee up to rest an arm over it. "She...left when I was young. I don't know why. No idea what made her leave, where she went... It's like she just vanished. She came to see me the night before, told me that...that she was protecting me. But I never knew from what."

He opened his eyes again, looking up to the ceiling. "No one at court ever talked about her again. They never even acknowledged she existed. I tried to ask, and I was just...rudely cut off. Told not to meddle in such matters. Even now, it...it feels like a bad dream. A creepy campfire tale I've never heard the end of."

The crease in Sokka's brow deepened, and he looked back at the tray. "Katara and I...our mother was killed in a raid some years ago. That flare that first brought you to our village... That was a stranded Fire Navy ship left from it. Our dad was already out fighting, so we didn't have too many we could turn to. Our grandmother was pretty much it."

Zuko winced hard, swallowing thickly. "I'm...I'm sorry."

"But you weren't even there."

He shook his head. "It happened when my family was in charge. I'm sorry on principle."

Sokka was about to rebuke him when the sound of footsteps on the metal floor made him turn around to see Katara heading up the passage toward them. She beckoned for them, and while he somewhat resented not getting to finish his lunch, most of him was glad for the distraction for depressing meal topics.

"We've reached the beaching point," she said. "We need you guys to help us get aground."

Zuko nodded, turning to Sokka. "We're on it. Come on..."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

It seemed so far away. Like looking at a map and realizing an inch on the paper is actually two hundred miles on the ground. That daunting feeling of "we'll never make it" settled in Zuko's knees as he looked up toward the mountain where the Northern Air Temple sat perched above the clouds.

"Last time, we had a flying bison," Sokka observed, as if reading his thoughts. "Not so lucky this round. We'll have to do it the hard way."

"Maybe not," Iroh mused. "Having to spend a week climbing up and down the mountain would never make the Temple such a desirable target. No doubt they've devised an easier means of reaching the summit."

"The trick will be using it without attracting attention," Zuko murmured, stroking his chin. "Last thing we want is the entire compound after us."

Sokka sighed, looking up toward the mountain. "I...wonder what they did with the Mechanist and all his guys. If they made it out out okay..."

Katara caught up neside him, resting a hand on his back. "I don't think they would've...gotten rid of him. They would need him to help them build the weapons, wouldn't they?"

He wrapped his arms around himself, looking almost chilled. "I would hope so."

Zuko swallowed hard, "They...don't make a habit of killing people they feel might still be useful, no. But they could easily have him imprisoned, which is a little better than dead. The only way we'll find out is by getting up to that mountain."

Sokka nodded. "I know." And he did. But that didn't make his nerves any less frayed as they marched onward. The cold, twisting fear that hot noodle soup and jerked beef and human connection had helped to assuage returned with all the vengeance of an Antarctic blizzard. Made his guts wrench and freeze painfully while his stomach did sickening lurches with every bad scenario he conjured.

There would be few times in his life that he would pray for his famed instincts to be wrong. This was one of them.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

It didn't take nearly as long as they had anticipated to find the lift the soldiers were using to get from the main temple complex at the summit to the tanks waiting at the Base Checkpoint. Not that it was trying to be inconspicuous or anything. A gigantic, sturdy tower of steel leading to the first far outcropping, employing a pulley system manned by both men and beasts below to drag the steel pod along its sharply inclined track.

Zuko lowered the spyglass, letting out a breath and muttering under it. "Getting in without being noticed. That's...going to be tricky. They're kind of everywhere."

Katara crouched beside him on the coverlet of snow, frowning in thought. "Do you think your trick in Ba Sing Se might work? You know, knock out some guards and take their uniforms?"

Zuko shook his head. "Uncle and I would be spotted immediately, and you and Sokka would never pass for Fire Nation."

"What about as prisoners?" Sokka asked. "With you as our escort? Just make a bandanna to hide the scar. Worked for the Dai Li."

Zuko blinked. "You think Fire Nation military is that stupid?"

"We tricked them into thinking the lemur could Earthbend. To be honest? I think _I'm_ giving them too much credit."

"And if they aren't, we'll have every soldier in the temple after us. Possibly with an arsenal of stockpiled superweapons." Zuko shook his head. "I don't know if I want to take that chance."

"You know" Iroh mused, "if we can't use their shortcut, we'll just have to make our own."

"How? Our Earthbender's all the way back in Ba Sing Se."

Iroh smiled. "Why go through the mountain when you can go over it?"

Sokka looked at him as if he'd grown an extra head, while Katara grinned knowingly. "You may not have an Earthbender, but you've got the next best thing."

Zuko caught the sentiment, grinning as well. "All yours."

She got up, starting to lead them back into the forest. "We just need to find a more secluded area.."

It didn't take long, maybe an hour's walk, before the sounds of soldiers and great beasts heaving on cable lines faded into the sounds of birds and the rustle of trees and the snow itself crunching under their feet. They emerged from the treeline again at the mountain's base, and she motioned for them all to stand back as she took her stance.

One great sweep of her arms called up a sizeable snowdrift, and tiny upward pushes of her hands began to push and stretch it high into the sky, fisting her hands to solidify it into a thick, growing ramp of ice, aimed straight for a stable outcrop. She added the snow as needed, pushing it higher and higher until the edge of the ramp met the rock. She then gathered the snow at the landing over the ice to bond it, giving the base a testing kick. It held, not even cracking at the blow.

Sokka blinked, looking at the ramp, then at his sister. "Have I told you lately how hard you rule?"

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

The great pillars of the Northern Air Temple's western facade greeted them with an almost tangible reverence as twilight set in, glinting on the polished stone and casting everything behind them in lengthening shadows, its peaceful atmosphere belying the purpose it was now being used for. The thought made Sokka shiver as he stopped to look around and survey their surroundings, frowning.

"So...where to?" Zuko asked

"The main weapons facility," Sokka whispered. "It's the giant chamber on the East Side. Haven't been here in a while, but I think I remember the way." Katara traded glances with Zuko and Iroh, before frowning and following him.

He'd forgotten just how enormous the place was, but it came back to him slowly as he lead them into the complex proper. But it looked far different than when they visited last. The statues were gone, some alcoves containing only bases while others held nothing at all. The flora and fauna they had admired before as reminders of the temple's origin were also absent, replaced by what looked like industrial waste material. Scrap metal and broken wagons covered in coal dust, burned tools and torn fabric.

It looked like a warzone. Which shouldn't have been surprising since they were at war, but he still found himself rather disturbed as they picked their way along the wall, careful to stay in the shadows. Especially when the sounds of annoyed voices resonated from across the main courtyard. They all scurried around the corner of the wall, Sokka at the leading edge, listening intently.

"I can't believe this. They know we have a rogue vessel headed our way, but they act like it's not even happening. Do they _want_ us all killed, or do they just not care what happens to this place?"

"I think they're just using a silent strongarm. They want to show these guys that they're not afraid of 'em and hope they're intimidated enough to back off. Considering how fast those Earth Kingdom types ran at the first sign of the drill? I gotta wonder _why_ Ba Sing Se is still standing."

The other soldier snorted. "If the General's plan works out? That won't be the case for much longer."

Sokka felt his insides squirm as the men's footsteps and laughter faded into the distance. That sickly dreading sensation that made his gut burn and shudder as though he'd swallowed a handful of fire flakes whole. He turned back, trading glances with the others, able to feel the blood draining from his face. Zuko frowned, patting his arm.

"Let's find the chamber."

Sokka nodded, swallowing hard and leading them on, past the even more ruined ruins of living quarters and meditation halls, which had been crudely converted into barracks and forges and storage for the more mundane weapons. He couldn't help but think how fortunate that Aang wasn't seeing this. Because he was willing to bet his boomerang that the kid would be kicking some serious tail via Avatar State if he ever did.

They slunk around a corner to familiar-looking hall. High-vaulted and lined with pillars, and though the cobbles were broken and missing in spots and the original decorations were torn or absent, he recognized it immediately. But then, the huge doors at the end of it were a pretty outstanding marker. Silent and majestic, despite the scorch marks on them. He looked up, taking in an overwhelmed breath at seeing them again, though he guessed it had more to do with the fear of what lay behind them.

"Here we are."

Katara stepped up beside him, resting a hand on his shoulder. "Except that...we can't open it. We'd need an Airbender for that."

"But the Fire Nation got in there somehow. So did the Mechanist. There's got to be a way."

Iroh stepped up ahead of them, studying the door. "You are half correct, my dear. You do need Airbending, but not necessarily from an Airbender."

Zuko turned to him, frowning. "Another technique you adopted?"

He nodded. "As I told you before, Prince Zuko. Everything is connected. You only need to find out how."

They all watched as the old man took his stance, but not the kind Sokka had ever seen a Firebender use. One knee bent low to the ground, the other leg stretched long behind him. He stretched his arms to either side, palms up, taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly as his fingers spread wide.

The barest hint of a flame sparked in either hand, growing steadily into a healthy but controlled blaze. His wrists began to flick as he took in deeper breaths, as though he were twisting the handle of a sword. The fire obeyed, wrapping in a steady circle around his hands, faster and faster as he increased the pace of those movements. Until they blurred into a motion none of their eyes could follow, and Sokka himself felt a prominent, hot breeze whip past his ear.

They all stood back from him, sharing the same expression of complete disbelief as he brought his hands out in front of him, aiming them for the two openings in the door ahead. The heat from the blaze around his hands made the air itself waver, in two distinct paths. The wooden shields on the door's outer trigger spun readily, giving way for the scorching breeze to make its way through the tubes to the inner triggers. They too caved, and with a great whine of protest, the dors began to swing outward on their ancient hinges.

Zuko swallowed thickly, turning to his uncle. "How did you...?"

Iroh smirked as they headed into the chamber. "Fire creates the very wind that drives it."

Sokka was about to try and figure out what he meant when the chamber itself caiught his attention. Greeted by the sound of equipment moving. Of gears turning and hammers falling, the rush of air to cool the machines as they worked. Yet he couldn't see anything happening, where the noise was coming from. The sensation unnerved him, being able to hear the sounds of hard mechanical labor, but not see the fruits of it.

He looked up into the heights of the great room, murmuring under his breath. "Something isn't right. You'd expect to see this chamber to be working like a broke street vendor with all that racket."

Zuko followed his gaze, then looked back at the yawning space ahead before the ground dropped off into a deep ravine. "Unless we're _all_ hearing things, I don't think we're looking hard enough."

He ventured forward, the others falling behind him. Until it became apparent that the noise itself came from beneath their feet. Sokka's heart pounded in time with the machinery as he neared the edge of the drop, swallowing the brick in his throat before chancing the fateful look down.

His stomach knotted up like a piece of bad knitting.

A fully working factory sprawled below, thousands of machines manned by even more people, some obviously soldiers while most obviously not. Working away at a dragging, trudging pace. Each with his own small task to add to the whole, but the sight of so many at once was simply dizzying. Especially from so high up. But nothing prepared him for the sight as he looked further on. Behind the workers and their machines, to the far end of the chamber.

Balloons. Hundreds of them.

Moored to the floor, the wire frames that supported the stretched red fabric of their canopies creaking in the breeze. The very sound of them made Sokka's heart clench painfully in his chest with a kind of fear he'd never known in his life. Not the heated, active kind he felt on the battlefield, but a cold, crushing kind. The one that knows something terrible is about to happen, and there's very little to be done about it.

"God..." he murmured, feeling his eyes sting. "God, what have I done...?"

TO BE CONTINUED...


	14. Spirit Journey

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 14: Spirit Journey

* * *

He couldn't stop shaking.

He wanted to scream.

He wanted to throw up.

But he knew this was neither the time nor the place for either one as they all slunk back through the door, and the great portal closed after them as though with a mind of its own, and doubly quiet. As if it knew their predicament and did not wish to alert the captors of its home. It was only when he led them into an alcove of the complex's most untouched -- and therefore remote -- sector that he finally leaned back against the wall with a hand to his forehead, breath shallow and fast and fingers trembling.

Katara set her hands on his shoulders to steady him, biting her lip, while Zuko kept watch around the corner for any pursuers. He felt her kneel with him as he slid down the wall to the ground, knees unable to hold him any longer. All the fear and dread and helplessness he'd wrestled with on board the ship now returned tenfold, hitting him like a battering ram to the gut. Making his insides shudder and his throat burn.

"There's no way. No way at all," he murmured. "We can't do anything to stop this. No time to even warn anyone before it's too late. We're screwed..."

"Never say that," Iroh cut him off. "The minute you start believing such things is when it's truly over."

"So...what do we do?" Zuko ventured. "We need to warn the Avatar, of course. But by the time we sail back to Ba Sing Se, it'll be too late. They'll already be on the move."

"We need a way to warn him from here," Katara said, though it was obvious she was stuck for way to _do_ that. "Um...steal a messenger hawk maybe?"

Zuko shook his head. "It could be intercepted, and then we're really up the river without a boat. Any kind of message we don't deliver ourselves will run into the same issue. It needs to get there without the Fire Nation finding out."

"Then we only have one choice," Iroh announced, and all eyes turned to him expectantly. "The only way we can deliver a message to the Avatar, timely and with the most minimal risk of interception, is by tapping into that with which he is most familiar. The Spirit World itself."

Sokka didn't think it was possible for his confidence to sink any lower, but it did just at the look on Zuko's face. "Uncle, you...how? You can only get to the Spirit World by dying and--"

Iroh shook his head. "A common misconception. Dying is the only way _most_ people can get to the Spirit World. But it's very possible to do so and still remain alive. It simply takes a lot of effort and specific training." He met Zuko's gaze knowingly. "I've done it before."

It felt as if the moonlight above had become an invisible pall, settling over all of them in a moment of charged silence. Sokka looked to Zuko, who looked positively ashen, almost ghostly. Katara wasn't much better, her cheeks paling despite her naturally dark skin. He swallowed thickly, meeting Iroh's eyes himself. "How...How would that work? Doesn't Aang have to be in the Spirit World for you to contact him?"

Iroh nodded. "He will be, at this time of night. If he's asleep and dreaming." At their identical looks of bewilderment, he elaborated. "Journeying to the Spirit World is a simple matter of letting go of earthly attachments. Even just for a moment. The Avatar, because of his nature, has the affinity to do this at will more than most people. It's what the Avatar State is; he's connecting with his past lives through the Spirit World.

"But to a point, we_all_ enter the Spirit World partially when we dream. For those few minutes, we're letting go of ourselves and allowing our spirits to ascend. Not to the level the Avatar does, but enough that we can receive messages from the Spirit World if its residents have something to say." He paused, looking over each of them. "The proper mental training and discipline is required to do such a thing while still awake, when the mind is most active and aware."

Zuko swallowed thickly. "Is it safe? For you, I mean."

Iroh sighed. "Not entirely. Disengaging the spirit from the body always carries a risk. But at this point, we have no other choice."

Sokka nodded, despite his sinking heart. "Then we'll do what we must."

"But how can we--"

"We've got to," Sokka cut him off, and it came out far more vehement than he'd wanted it to. "We _have_ to do something."

Iroh rested a hand on his nephew's shoulder, comforting. "I'll be all right, Prince Zuko. Don't worry."

Zuko hesitated, before biting his lip and nodding silently. In a way that clearly said he didn't believe him.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

It was dark. Swirling and inky, but hardly oppressive. The free kind of darkness, cool and calming, where he didn't have to worry about all the fears he suppressed rearing up to mock him with nightmares and visions and the end of the world that he couldn't stop because he was still a mere child, Avatar or not, and saving the world was a job for adults. It was a nice change, to say the least.

Except for the part where it never lasted, and tonight was no different. Before him, the darkness tore itself into a long, oval portal of white light, growing taller and wider until it towered above his head, bright enough that he found it painful to look at despite knowing his body wasn't actually feeling any discomfort as he had his eyes closed and his face buried in a pillow and warm blanket to snuggle under.

He shielded his eyes with his arm as the light flared its brightest, then settled to a more comfortable dimness. He dared a look over his sleeve, blinking in puzzlement at the familiar glowing figure of Roku's dragon as it stepped from the portal. But it was not the former Avatar who perched atop its neck. Aang rubbed his eyes, blinking as it came into better focus, murmuring aloud yet barely realizing it.

"...Iroh?"

The great steed crouched on the invisible black plane before him, bowing its head to the ground in respect. Iroh's spectral form offered a hand, his voice thick with effort. "Come with me, Avatar. I don't have a lot of time, but there's something I must show you before it's too late."

"But...But why are you... H-How? I don't understand..."

Iroh shook his head, stretching his hand out further in beckoning. "I'll explain later. Just trust me on this one, please."

Aang bit his lip in reflex, even knowing that this had to be a dream and therefore the danger was at least not physical. He swallowed thickly, taking that hand and letting Iroh pull him up onto the dragon's back. The animal loosed a trilling growl, turning around and heading back into the light, making Aang hide his face in Iroh's shoulder for a second. When he looked up again, they were flying high above the land, across the continent at a dizzying speed. In much the same way as he had on the Winter Solstice to see Roku himself.

Aang clung to the back of Iroh's cloak, murmuring. "Where are we going?"

Iroh pointed ahead, to the mountains, and he could clearly see the spires of the Northern Air Temple. But there were not clear and serene as he'd left them months ago. Rather, smoke billowed from exhaust stacks and the stone itself was blackened with soot and grime. The red flags with the dreaded insignia flying above explained everything, and he felt a knot of dread form in his figurative stomach.

The dragon took them in brazenly, as if it knew that no soldier stationed at this place could see them. And they were everywhere, running supplies and watching from the towers, piling finished armor and weapons on great salamander-drawn wagons for transport and heaving them onto tanks at the mountain's base. His apprehension grew as they neared the doors of the great eastern chamber, passing through them effortlessly into the yawning cavern beyond, the very air aflame with the smoke and sweat of hard labor.

"The story Azula told is true," Iroh intoned as they neared the edge of the great ravine at the chamber's center. "There will be an attack on Ba Sing Se, on a scale which no one had previously imagined."

"And they're preparing it here?" Aang asked. "How are they going to get through the walls?"

"They won't need to," Iroh answered as the dragon leaned over the chasm to let them see down into it. "Nobody need go through the walls any longer. The Fire Nation has found a way _over_ them."

Aang forced away the hard lump in his throat as he looked down into it, letting his eyes follow the pattern of movement to the far end of the giant pit, through the steam and smoke of machinery, those unmistakeable forms towering above the writhing landscape before them. His jaw dropped, and if he had a stomach it would've churned violently after tying itself into a very unlucky knot.

"They... They can't..."

"They are," Iroh affirmed. "You must warn the citizens at once."

Aang shook his head, trying desperately not to panic. "But...But what about the Dai Li? Even if I warn people, they won't listen. They're afraid..."

"You must find a way to make them listen. If not to you, then to one of their own. As long as they hear and heed the warning, it doesn't matter who bears it. But you have to try. Saving some, no matter how few, is better than saving none."

Aang nodded, though his expression didn't change. "They can't be stopped, can they?"

Iroh shook his head. "Not with any means we have. You'll have time to get some of the civillians to safety at the very most. It's best not to waste it."

He briefly recalled the incident with Jet at the reservoir. What Sokka had done to avert disaster, rather than what Aang knew he would've tried in his friend's shoes. Because he was a hero. Or thought he was, at any rate, before it was proven to him through his own brash ignorance just how human and vulnerable and helpless he could be, despite possessing the deepest well of potential power in the world. That same fear that he'd known watching the dam explode and the wall of water come crashing down through the valley gripped him now in iron talons around his noncorporeal heart.

_This is no time for a hero. They need a leader._

He nodded, fingers tightening in Iroh's clothes. "I'll do whatever I can to save them first. But we aren't backing down without a fight."

Iroh turned around, his face serious. "Victory is not always possible, Avatar Aang. Choose your battles wisely."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Zuko bit his lip, hardly daring to breathe lest the sound disturb Iroh's concentration. He'd been sitting like that for over an hour, eyes lightly closed, hands resting in front of him, and legs crossed in a way that made the prince's hips hurt just watching it. Serene and still, as though the rest of the world had ceased to exist. Of course, in his mind it had.

Sokka swallowed thickly, looking between the three of them, finally settling on Zuko. "Is...Is he okay?"

"I don't know. I've never seen him do anything like this before..."

Katara's brow creased in worry, staring at his frozen form. "I saw Aang do it once. At the North Pole Oasis. He was almost not breathing when he meditated like that. Your uncle doesn't have any glowing tattoos to speak of, but he's in the Spirit World by no--"

Zuko cut her off with a hand to her lips, suddenly alert. "_Shhh!_"

He could barely hear it over her voice, though his entire body reacted with years of military training. The clack of boots and the creak of plated armor, the flap of leather and the clink of a scabbard against its girding. He knew them anywhere. And there were lots of them.

"What is it?" Sokka whispered.

"Soldiers," he answred, lowering his hand from Katara's mouth. "Not a full battallion, but enough to make me nervous."

"And how many would that be?" she asked.

"Twenty. Maybe twenty-five. Hard to tell." He gulped, taking another look at his uncle. "We have to get out of here before we're discovered."

"But we can't move his body," Katara said. "It's his anchor here. He won't be able to get back to the physical world otherwise."

Zuko clenched his hands to stop their shaking. "Well we can't just leave him here." His mind raced for a solution. Something to keep his uncle safe and avoid fighting off an entire outpost full of Fire Nation troops. Off course, the latter would accomplish the former. The sticky part was that Iroh's body had to stay put if they didn't want to lose him for good. He almost wished he knew more about this Spirit World stuff, no matter how frightening he found the concept of a world full of dead people that he entered into through his sleep every night.

"I'm going to go find out exactly how many there are first," he said. "Then I'll figure something out."

Sokka nodded, despite a visible shudder. "We'll stay here with him."

He sucked in a breath, slinking around the corner, pressed to the wall, edging silently toward the sound of his brethren marching back the way he'd just come. Toward the great chamber with those flying monstrosities. He gulped, heart pounding furiously as the noice grew louder the closer he drew. Until the stone itself shook beneath his feet, making him wince. He swallowed hard in anticipation, turning to peer around the wall and into the main corridor leading from the courtyard.

The sight of them made him sick inside. Yet he stared, mentally counting the rows of marching feet until the last one disappeared into the distance ahead, and the sound of its following battallion echoed from the stone plaza behind. The realization hit him like a polearm strike. They had no time to waste. At all.

He edged back the way he came as quickly as possible, coming back to the alcove, knowing he must look like hell warmed over by the expressions his companions wore.

"Do we wanna know?" Sokka asked.

Zuko shook his head. "They're on the move already. The fleet will be at Ba Sing Se by next week if they leave tonight."

"Then we need to go after them," Katara said, sounding confident as ever, but it didn't take much effort to see the worry behind her eyes.

"And where would you be going so quickly?"

All three of them jumped as if they'd sat on tacks, looking around frantically like a family of startled field mice at the sound of a screaming hawk. The crunch of boots on stone made Zuko's heart threaten to cave in, before the form of a grinning young infantryman met him head on. His smile widened, and he drew his saber with a menacing skirr of chilled steel.

"Well, if it isn't our Traitor Prince himself. Looks like I played the lucky tile today after all..."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"You can't be serious," Shen murmured, shaking the sleep from his body as he stared at Aang in a cross between disbelief and abject horror. "You rode atop Avatar Roku's dragon, with General Iroh, to the Northern Air Temple. Through the Spirit World. In a dream."

Toph snorted. "He's the Avatar. He can do that, remember?"

Aang nodded. "I don't have dreams like that unless they're important. And this one is. We have a fleet of war balloons headed right for us. _Hundreds_ of them."

Jin stroked her chin, staring into the fire. "There are plenty of entrances for the people to access the tunnels with. They'll just have to bring supplies. You said we have a week to prepare?"

"At the shortest, yes," Aang replied. "We have to get as many people as we can to safety, and prepare to defend this place as nest we can. Even if we lose, we have to try."

Shen nodded. "My men will station themselves at the major entrances and round up anyone who will listen to us. It's the most we can do to get these people to safety."

"Then let's do it as soon as dawn breaks," Aang said. "We don't have a moment to lose."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	15. The Escape

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 15: The Escape

* * *

Zuko held his breath for that moment as the soldier advanced, trading apprehensive glances with Sokka and Katara while the three of them closed around Iroh defensively. He swallowed hard, military training kicking in as he assessed their surroundings. Mostly for possible escape routes for the other two.

Which was going to be a lot trickier as the man's friends stepped in behind him to investigate.

"Kai? You find something?"

He smirked, stepping aside to let his comrade in. A younger boy, still a teenager by the look of his smooth features. "Oh did I. How much you think their heads will fetch?"

His eyes widened, a hand shooting up to his mouth as it fell open.

Kai laughed, twirling the saber in his hand with unbridled smugness. "Yeah, I thought so, too."

Zuko felt Sokka's arm press into his as they backed up toward Iroh. His heart pounded against his ribs. "We can't leave him," he whispered.

"I know," he whispered back. "But we have to get out of here."

"Not all of us do," Katara murmured, backing in to close the shield, close enough for Zuko to feel her breath on his shoulder. "You two run for it. I'll hold them off until your uncle gets back to his body."

Zuko's stomach did a sickening flip, landing somewhere in his chest at the thought. "Are you crazy? You against a whole outpost?"

"What choice do we have?" she hissed.

_None_. He hated admitting it. Somebody would have to stay there with him, and there was no one better than a Waterbender to make sure he had a body to get back to. His stomach tightened at how she'd offered to help him long ago, after Azula had struck him with lightning. And how he'd declined her aid with a panicked fireblast.

He could afford to be foolish then. Not this time.

"You can't do that!" Sokka snapped, but still in a whisper.

"I can and I will," she growled. "Now get going. We don't have time!"

Zuko didn't see a point in wasting a second of it, grabbing Sokka's arm and yanking him away down the nearest passage despite the boy's best effots to wrench out of that grip. He finally succeeded once they were in the outer ring to the courtyard, whirling on him with his sword brandished. The same one he'd retrieved from the warship's crew.

"What the holy flying hell are you doing? We can't leave her like that!"

"We have to," he said. "Somebody needs to defend Uncle while the other two draw attention away fom them."

"But--"

"It's the only way," he cut him off. "Now come on!"

The whistle of a blade flew past his ear, as though to prove his point. They both turned in time to see the man called Kai down the passage, brandishing his saber as the man flanking him twirled a second and third knife between his fingers. All of them grinning dangerously.

"You really think I'm going let my reward money get away?"

Sokka scowled at him, then shifted his eyes back to Zuko. "Fine. You win this round, asshole."

Zuko found himself smirking, despite the insult. "Good. Now shut up and help me_kick some_."

Kai rushed them as Zuko drew his own broadswords, and Sokka barely managed to duck a fistful of thrown daggers. The clang of blades meeting each otherb under the moonlight bounced off the stone corridor with a sharp, fierce cadence between ducking and spinning out of each other's way. He found himself backed against the wall, narrowly avoiding the thrusts of Kai's weapon.

He edged along the wall in dodges, guiding the man's attacks until a narrow seam of the masonry rested at the back of his head. He held the position for those precious few seconds as Kai reared his arm back for a skull-piercing thrust right between his brows.

Zuko moved. Wrenched out of the way a hairsbreadth ahead of the steel.

The blade sank deep into the crack, slicing into the mortar with a loud skirr. Kai cursed as he yanked on the hilt, the grip of the masonry holding fast. Enough for Zuko to nail him in the side with flying kick. The man's own grip proved to be much weaker than the stone, for he went sprawling onto the cobbles with a grunt, turning halfway to give Zuko a poisonous glare, white moonlight glinting in his black eyes.

He was back up and swinging in less than three seconds. And his fist proved more difficult to dodge than his blade. Zuko ducked a swing that would've easily dislocated his jaw, using the opening to ram his elbow into the man's rib cage. Kai reeled, giving Zuko the opportunity to sweep his foot into a sidekick to the man's jaw. Again, he went tumbling to the ground. Only this time he didn't get up.

Zuko had less than a moment to appreciate the victory before Sokka's loud yelp made him look up. A good forty feet down the passage, the boy was pinned to the wall by his clothes with an impressive collection of knives, looking very much not pleased as Kai's buddy advanced on him with his saber. Zuko burst into a run, skidding the last few feet and nailing the unsuspecting soldier with a chop to the back of the neck. He joined Kai a moment later, prone on the cobbles and not moving.

He pulled the blades from Sokka's clothes, tossing them over his shoulder as the boy took up his weapon again. "Thanks, man. I owe you."

"Come on," Zuko snapped, though it came out a lot more gruff than he'd intended.

Sokka's eyes narrowed. "Something wrong?"

He shook his head, biting his tongue for now. "Not yet."

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She was beginning to wonder if this really was one of her not-so-great ideas. Certainly the soldiers whose spears and knives she was dodging made her think so, what with the way she had to imitate that circus freak to avoid getting a knife in the back. Her brother would've agreed, but then he was more apt to spazz and go on a ten-point dodging spree in the middle of a battle than anyone she'd known.

Her palms flattened wide as she lunged to the side and swung her arm, sweeping the water in a razor-thin, lightning-fast whip that would've severed a limb were her assailant a second too slow. Fortunately for him he was quick enough to save his arm, but not so much as to escape entirely. He cried out, staggering and dropping his sword to reach a hand over to clutch the top of his shoulder, blood starting to trail over his uniform where she'd sliced right through his two-layered armor.

The man's companion stared her down, eyes narrowing. "Fast little hussy, ain't she?"

She backed closer to Iroh, parting her feet in a wider stance and flexing her hands in anticipation. Besides the two in front of her, she heard the steps of another pair to her left flank, just beyond the alcove wall.

"No shit," the injured one growled. "How about we up the ante a bit? See how fast she is with more targets, huh?"

His partner grinned. "Sounds like a plan. Whaddya say, boys? We give her something to play with?"

She shifted her eyes in a sidelong glance at the sound of boots scraping on stone. The two that were hiding on her flank emerged, one chuckling and drawing his own saber while his comrade twirled a pair of butterfly knives between skilled fingers. "Count me in. She looks a little bored."

The man with the knives chuckled. "Don't worry, little lady. Give us a good time, and we'll return the favor."

The feeling in her stomach at those words was decidedly...icky. Yet her feet eased back into a more stable, defensive stance, eyes darting around at each one of them and waiting with racing heart and still breath for someone to make a move.

The one with the injured shoulder struck first, rushing her from the side. She sidestepped it rather than blocked, letting his momentum carry him while she called up a handy ice shield to deflect one of his companion's butterfly blades. The third man leapt into a sharp downward strike, in hopes of dodging an attack and getting the figurative and literal drop on her.

She heard the whistle of the blade long before she saw him, skidding to the side of his landing and meeting him with an ice-whip that made the blade itself shudder in his hands, and charged it with an instant arctic chill. He dropped it with a curse and a clatter, and she brought whip around to knock a trio of knives off a course straight for her back.

The first man dug his heels in to stop himself, turning to face her. "The game's getting a little stale, don't you think?"

She flexed her hands, the water whip moving slowly in front of her as though anticipating her oppoenents' next move. "It's only just begun."

"Quit the riddle-talk and fight." He smirked. "Or are you too afraid to play with real men?"

Her hands tensed. "Boys don't scare me."

The man scowled, bringing his sword out, moonlight glinting menacingly on the blade's edge, and merely growling his answer before he struck. She whirled the water to knock his blade aside, narrowly avoiding another handful of knives, one grazing her ear with a light sting. The second saber whistled past her hip as its wielder rushed her, and she heard the rip as blade's point caught the sleeve of her robe, slamming her wrist against the stone.

She tried to pull her arm away from the wall, only to find it held fast and tight by the fabric, the sword sunk well into the mortar between the stones. Heart pounding with the knowledge that this was about to turn very bad if she couldn't do something, she reached with her other hand to try and free herself.

Another blade flew in to join the first. One of the butterfly daggers, pinning her other wrist to the stone in a similar fashion. She looked up, swallowing hard as the remaining three of them advanced on her. One twirling his saber, another handling a knife, and the third licking the blade of his remaining butterfly dagger.

"Awww, looks like we're scaring her now, ain't we?"

She stared them down solidly, despite the quiver in her knees, straining against the pinning blades. But she had no leverage and even less luck, held down so fast she couldn't even move her hips.

The one looming over her licked his lips. "So, sweetheart... How's it feel to play with the big boys...?"

She was about to retort when a blast of fire shattered the inky night gloom behind him, the heat and roar and sudden brightness of it making her wince. Though she couldn't turn around to look, she didn't need to.

"Where are your manners, handling a lady so roughly?"

The soldier growled, turning in the direction of the voice. "Get outta here, old man!"

She couldn't help the grin. Or the shudder of relief. _Finally!_

"Old man?" Iroh chuckled. "If you treat your elders as harshly as you treat women, you really should be ashamed of yourselves." His tone hardened. "Now I suggest you unhand her. I would prefer not to incinerate you where you stand."

The man's hand trembled on his sword in anger. "You asked for it, geezer! Get him!"

But much to his consternation, the three of them stood still as the stone itself.

"I gave you an order!"

The one with the butterfly knife spoke up first. "You have no idea who you're dealing with, do you? That's the Dragon of the freakin' West! Are you crazy?"

He trained his snarl on the three of them instead. "Cowards, the lot of you. If you're not gonna take him, I will!" He pulled his sword free of the stone, whirling on a heel to rush Iroh.

She took the opportunity for all it was worth, pulling out the butterfly knife with her freed hand and hurling a speedy water whip in a wide arc toward her remaining assailants. They tried to scramble out of its way, but proved to be not quite fast enough on their feet, meeting the far wall face-first instead.

She turned to Iroh, who had affected a similar treatment on the other soldier, for the man lay prone and still on the ground. "Did you get the message to him?"

He nodded. "Where are the boys?"

"They went to go get our ship ready while I stalled those goons."

"Then let's find them. We need to lweave before the rest of the temple knows we're here."

She followed him as they both took off down the passage, wondering for the first time if their efforts would even pay off. A ragtag group of less than ten against a full fleet of war balloons. The odds seemed like a no-brainer.

_Never say that. The minute you start believing such things..._

He was right. At the moment, hope was one of the few things they had.

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"C'mon," Sokka panted. "We beached to the east. We have to exit this way!"

Zuko followed him, knowing better than to question a Water Tribesman's sense of direction. Especially after Iroh told him the story of the old master who navigated the two of them through rock-filled shallows in the middle of a great fog. Their feet pounded the stone like a child's drum as they ran, fast approaching the fork at the passage's end.

Zuko's eyes widened at the sound of an opposing rhythm, approaching from around the left corner, about as fast they were running, hitting the upbeat of their own. But the sound wasn't the same as the hard boots his military brethren with which the temple was crawling wore, rather the softer, scraping impact of moccasins.

He lunged forward, grabbing Sokka's wrist and pulling him back and hissing in his ear. "Stop! There's someone ahead of us!"

The boy opened his mouth to protest, but immediately thought better of it. "More soldiers?"

Zuko shook his head, pulling them both to flatten against the wall. "No. Wrong shoes." He hoped to high heavens it was their two remaining comrades, but he wasn't about to assume anything.

Sokka shivered, keeping his eyes trained on the end of the passage as well as the sound pounded closer. Right on top of them. About to round the corner. Zuko's heart jumped into his throat, feet turning and parting and readying themselves to jump into battle stance at a half-second's notice.

Two figures rounded the corner toward them, and his whole body would've collapsed in a sigh of relief had he not had the wall in back of him.

"Sis!"

"Uncle!"

They caught up to each other, Sokka sparing Katara a brief hug while Zuko smiled in gratitude he dared not voice, mostly for fear of jinxing it. "Boy are we glad to see you two."

"The feeling is mutual," Iroh agreed. "But we can save the celebrating for later. Right now, we need to get back to the ship."

Sokka nodded. "Follow me, then. Before those thugs wake up and alert their buddies."

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Jin knelt by the fireside, holding her hands out to let it warm them, as she'd forgotten just how cold things were this far underground. Her ankle rested on the cradle of a folded blanket, and she was pleased to find the pain and swelling had diminished over the night. The kettle hung over the fire, and she sighed as she waited for it to boil.

The soft scuff of a hard sole on the rocky ground made her look up, smiling at Shen's towering form in the firelight. "Can't sleep, either?"

He nodded. "I don't know how the others do it some nights." He gestured to the empty space beside her. "May I?"

She chuckled. "I can't exactly drink a whole pot myself."

He cracked a nervous smile, easing down to join her. "And General Iroh would be horrified at the thought of wasted tea."

"That he would." She frowned. "Where do you plan to station the men?"

"We have a battallion of fifty-eight, which is enough to cover the entrances in the city's southeast quadrant with two men to a portal. One to spread the word, the other to direct refugees to the central camp. With any luck, some will actually listen to us. We'll be moving out to position in a few hours."

She nodded, turning to look up at him, the question on the tip of her tongue but stopped by the doubt of whether or not she should ask. It was none of her business and she knew it, but that did nothing to diminish her curiosity. "You said you deserted the military after the siege. Why?"

He stared into the flames, the glow of them making his eyes look misty and accentuating the lines on his face, making him appear older than she knew he was. "When you're in the trenches, there are times you must do things you should never be proud of, even if it's for the sake of others' lives. My men and I...we were tired of it. As tired as General Iroh himself." He sighed, letting his eyes close. "War is madness, Lady. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

She swallowed thickly, following his gaze into the heart of the swirling fire. "My father always said that war is little more than a vicious cycle of hatred. And when it goes on as long as this one has, the reason it even started is forgotten."

"Your father was a very wise man."

She smiled. "Yes. He was."

The whistle of the kettle brought her out of her thoughts, and she quickly took it off the hook, pouring the water into the teapot. "I hope chamomile's okay with you."

"Chamomile's perfect. I think all our nerves can use the calming." He took the cup from her, sipping it. "Thank you."

"Life must be...difficult...underground for a Firebender. What with the separation from the sun and all."

He nodded. "It is. But if there's anything my master taught me, it's that it isn't the sun itself that a Firebender draws power from, but the spirit of the sun. A spirit which we channel through our 'Inner Fire.'"

She quirked a brow. "Inner Fire?"

"Our own driving spirit. Our motivation, our goals, and the determination to see them reached. Even if we're separated from the sun, our strength will only wane if the Inner Fire does." He smiled, turning to her.

"Above all else, there are two things every Firebender needs to remember. We must never give up without a fight. And we must never forget who we are."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	16. The Warning

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 16: The Warning

* * *

Jin sucked in a breath, trying to quell the shaking in her knees at the small crowd gathered outside the remains of what was once her favorite teahouse. "I...I know it sounds crazy, but you've got to believe me."

"Nonsense," one of the older men scoffed. "Why would anyone attack the city when there's no war?"

She pressed two fingers to the bridge of her nose, trying not to seethe. "There _is_ a war. There's been a war for the last century, and it's going to be over one way or another by the end of Summer. Whether the Fire Nation enslaves the world or not is all up to us." She looked back up at them, sufficiently calm. "But at the moment, there's an airborne Fire Nation attack fleet on the way."

The youth who'd been standing next to the older man stepped forward. "Can you get us to safety?"

She nodded, feeling a rush of relief. "Yes. There's a network of tunnels over two hundred feet below us. You'll be safe from whatever they can throw at you down there."

"And what of the Dai Li?" a woman growled. "Why should we believe you over our city's own protectors?"

Her tone hardened. "Because they aren't protecting you. They're controlling you, and they have been for years."

"Where do you get off? I--"

"Look," she growled, "I'm not going to get into a debate about conspiracy theories. I'm only warning you because this city's about to be bombed into the ground, and you all have exactly one chance to survive it. Grab your supplies and follow me into the tunnels. If you choose to die on the surface, I sure as hell can't stop you. I can only tell you that not listening to me is a very bad idea."

"How long do we have?"

All eyes turned on the speaker, a short, surly girl with close-cropped hair and prominent tribal marks on her face. Jin breathed an inward sigh of relief, thankful that she'd gotten through to someone at least.

"A week at the very shortest. You have enough time to get to safety if you act fast. There are entrances to the tunnels scattered all over the southeast quadrant, and plenty of guides to get you through."

"You're not seriously listening to this broad, are you?"

The girl scowled at the speaker while her tall, silent companion looked on impassively. "She's the only person I've met in this city who's talking sense. So yeah, I'm listening."

"What do you mean talking sense! She's _delusional!_"

"You can't be serious," she scoffed. "You'd have to be either blind or a complete idiot to not know there's a war going on out there. Open your eyes and _look around you_. The refugees you see pouring through the gates every day looking for a job, food, and a place to live? They didn't come from natural disasters. They're coming from villages all over the Earth Kingdom that the the Fire Nation's razed to the ground!"

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because they did it to _mine_," she growled. "And no officer guy in an ugly hat is going to make me forget it."

"But..." the older man asked, "why would they lie?"

"Because nobody wants to deal with the civil unrest of a city that knows it's at war," Jin said. "It's easier to keep the people brainwashed with fear and blissful ignorance than to actually govern them." The murmur of her small audience died off into silence, and Jin sighed before speaking again.

"I know I'm asking you to believe a lot, but I wouldn't be doing it if the danger wasn't real. I'm risking capture by the Dai Li for even mentioning this. I have the least reason of all to be lying to you. I'm not asking for any money or allegiance or anything. All I want is for you to heed my warning and get to safety so you won't _die_."

She raised her head, looking squarely at them all. "You all have a chance to survive. Whether you take it or not is up to you. No matter how much I wish I could, I can't make you listen to me. The only thing I can do is give you the warning and hope you decide to save yourselves."

The moments dragged on for hours as they all frowned at her, expressions unreadable. Until the youth who had spoken first stepped forward.

"What supplies do we need?..."

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Zuko winced at the sound of clanging metal as he held the small flame aloft in his hand, heading down to the warship's tiny cargo hold to fetch Sokka while Katara and his uncle made preparations for night sailing. They'd managed to reach the ship without being followed, though how that happened he would never know.

Okay, maybe he would. The credit went mostly to Sokka's sense of direction and knack for finding good hiding places so they wouldn't have to face a fully armed battallion, outnumbered fifteen to one, with nothing but their bending skills and good looks.

Would've made one hell of a war story, though.

He reached the door, raising a hand and knocking before pushing it open, and staring at the mess of strewn goods in blinking bewilderment. Sokka knelt at the edge of the storm's tiny center, arm outstretched and one eye closed as though sighting a measurement. Zuko dared not step away from the door, not wanting to chance picking his way through the mess with the pitch of the ship. But even from his vantage point he could see what the boy was calibrating; a collection of five wooden ribs, placed so that one of their ends met at a single point, branching out like smooth, curved fingers.

"Sokka?"

He looked up, both oblivious and determined. "Yeah?"

"What are you _doing?_"

He looked back at the wooden beam he was measuring. "Putting together our counteroffensive. We can't just run like rats from a forest fire. We have to do something."

Zuko felt his heart sink. "Like what?"

Sokka stood, pacing to the other end of the room and digging through a mountain of random clutter. "The last time we fought the Fire Nation at the Northern Air Temple, we won 'cause we were the ones in the balloons. They had tanks crawling up the mountainside, but they couldn't do a goddamn thing against an airborne attack. As long as we had the skies, we'd have them on the run." He paused, hands shaking visibly as he pulled out a heavy canvas roll. "Now, _they_ have the skies. And _we're_ on the run."

Zuko sighed, pressing his fingers to the bridge of his nose. "So what are you going to do?"

He set the canvas down, unraveling a bolt of it over the formation and grabbing a brush and ink to mark it off with small, angry black strokes.

"The only thing I can. _Take them back_."

"But how?" Although he regretted asking immediately, now realizing he didn't want to know the answer.

"If they're in the air, we have to be, too. Aang wasn't the only guy on earth with a glider. The Mechanist and his displaced villagers had them, too, and I studied those blueprints 'til my eyes bled. They'll be crude to make with this stuff, but they're doable."

Zuko paused, needing to let the very idea sink in. "You're going to mount the four of us on gliders. Against that entire fleet of balloons."

Sokka nodded.

"_Have you bloody lost it?_"

He didn't even realize he'd screamed it until the boy looked up at him. "We have to try. Even if we fail, we can't just lie down and take it."

Zuko's hand flew to his forehead, before sweeping his arm out around them. "For the love of Hou Yi _listen to yourself!_ You saw the size of that fleet! There are at least a thousand of them! Maybe more by the time they lifted off! You, me, Katara, and the Avatar? We're _four!_ Four against a thousand! _Two-hundred fifty to one!_ You're out of your mind!"

Sokka just stared at him, as though not even hearing it. "You remember the Northern Siege, right? Zhao had a four-figure fleet on the chief's doorstep. Even before Aang did his spirit thing, he was trashing warships left and right all by himself. This time, the Fire Nation is attacking from the air, not the ocean." He went back to marking measurements, and though his voice was muted, there was no mistaking the depth of genuine conviction in it. "If anyone can give us a fighting chance, it's the last Airbender."

Zuko let the silence hang heavy and crushing, wanting to believe that the self-proclaimed Idea Guy was right and hadn't actually gone insane. Because he knew damn well that a normal person who didn't even have bending or half-decent combat skills to fall back on who was seriously going to take on an entire fleet with four makeshift gliders had to be putting something in his tea.

"Why are you so determined to stand and fight?"

"Because it's war and if we back down from this, we back down from everything." He swallowed thickly, pulling out a heavy-duty razor tool from the box at his side. "I've lost too many people to throw in the towel."

"No one's saying we have to give up. Only that we should be smart about the battles we choose. This isn't one we can win."

"If we only fight the battles we can win, then the whole effort is pointless. We don't_know_ what we're capable of unless we try. The odds are against us, sure. But the best way to ensure failure is to do nothing."

Zuko knelt beside him, frowning and looking on at the measured canvas, vividly recalling the inscription on the dagger at his belt. The words his uncle had given him as a child. The words that had turned him into who he was today.

Despite the pall over his heart at the notion of Sokka's plan, they'd never rung more truthfully.

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Jet wiped his arm across his forehead, pulling another jar of oil off the cart and loading it into the shop's back stockroom, where the vendor would later blend the scents and soak sticks in the mixture to make incense. It wasn't difficult work, moving jars of oil into stock and labeling them, then bundling finished sticks for sale and putting them out on display. It was merely tedious and long and strained the back. Not that Jet minded, since he was getting paid, and money meant a much better apartment than the literal shelf he had now.

He'd come for a second chance. He knew it would be hard, and he'd expected to feel restless and scared for a good long while until things settled into routine. But that wasn't the case at all, and he couldn't have been more glad. It almost made him wonder again about that cryptic boy he'd met on the ferry. The one with the scar and the really bad attitude. Try as he might, for days the guy's name had slipped his mind. Which was annoying because he knew it was a name he'd heard so many other times and with so many other faces.

"Jet!"

He looked up, wondering who else could be calling for him because the shop owner was the only person around whom he'd spoken to. But he saw them careening up the road in the distance, panting as they stopped, the girl bending forward to catch her breath.

"Jet, you've got to come with us. The city's gonna be attacked by the Fire Nation and we need to get supplies or we're screwed and there are these tunnels that go way below the ground and..."

He set the jar down on the ground, shaking his head. "Hold on, Smellerbee, back up a minute. What attack?"

"The one that's coming here!" she gasped. "This girl's been warning everyone and there are these soldiers stationed at the tunnels. They said they'll show us to safety."

"From what?" he asked. "That's crazy. No one would attack this place."

"Yes they woiuld if they were trying to win a war!"

Jet shook his head. "Calm down, we're safe. There's no war in Ba Sing Se. We're free."

She growled up at him, raising onto her toes to screw her face up into his. "Cut the crap, Jet, this is serious! We have to get some food and water and clothes and get underground, and I'm taking you down there with us if I have to drag you by the tongue. Now grab your stuff and come on!"

He backed away, shoving her down by the shoulders. "Now you're just talking psycho. The girl who warned you is probably out of her head or just trying to stir up trouble..."

"Look, I don't know what the hell the Dai Li did to your brain when they dragged you off, but no one would risk their wrath just for a damned prank. You don't go throwing a word like 'war' around in this city unless you mean it."

He swallowed hard, looking up at Longshot, as though hoping for some kind of backup. And though the boy stayed silent as usual, his eyes spoke volumes from under his paddy hat. This was not a joke, Smellerbee hadn't drunk any desert tonic, and there would be no peace until he agreed or they forcibly captured him.

He sighed, turning back to her. "Lead the way."

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"Central camp has about twenty-five refugees so far." Suki frowned as she headed up the passage to the entrance where Shen was no doubt trying to convince more people to save themselves, Lao at her side. "Apparently, they think we're either hitting the cactus juice, or that it's a plot to undermine the Dai Li and are too scared to say so."

"Even the Avatar is having trouble being taken seriously," he confirmed. "Perhaps we underestimated the power of Feng's choke-hold."

"Boy did we ever." She sighed. "Speaking of Aang...he said he wants to make a stand against them. Toph and I have both told him he's out of his head, but the kid's determined."

Lao turned to her, arching a brow in a mixture of interest and disbelief. "Make a stand with what? The army he keeps in his back pocket?"

She shook her head. "I don't know what he's planning, and something tells me I don't want to. I'd like to think that he's the Avatar, so he's got something up his sleeve that he's not telling us, you know?"

Lao nodded. "Either that or write him off as completely out of his head. Like most twelve-year-old boys."

"But he isn't most twelve-year-old boys, therein lies the problem." She swallowed thickly. "In any case, that won't help us get more people into the tunnels. And we have very little time..."

Lao stopped her, setting a hand on her shoulder. "We won't be able to spare all of them. You know that, right?"

She looked up at him, feeling her chest tighten a little. "Yeah, I do. But we've got to get as many as we can."

"And if they won't listen to you, you have to let it go."

"But they'll die out there once the attack comes. I can't just leave them!"

His expression didn't change. "I know you want to save as many as you can. But with such little time, you can't afford to dote on lost causes when your effort can be put to better use with those you _can_ save. If they don't want to follow, you have got to forget about them and move on to others. People who may actually heed your warning and come with you willingly to safety. If you waste all of your time trying to convince those too stubborn and scared to listen, you won't save _anyone_."

She swallowed hard, shivering and looking back at the ground. Her hands balled into fists, nails biting into her palms. The thought felt like a crushing weight on her chest, and she fought to keep her voice even.

"Before this...I was helping refugees _into_ Ba Sing Se, because everyone knew it was safe. They thought they would be okay there. So did I. And now...I've done nothing but send all of those people to die. They would've been better off in the shells of their razed villages..."

Lao sighed, patting her shoulder comfortingly. "You did as well as you could. That city hasn't fallen in a hundred years. Not even the great General Iroh managed to take it down. How were you to know this would happen? All you can do now is try to get them out of danger once again." He sighed. "It's war, child. We all do things we're ashamed of, and mistakes we make will always end up costing lives. But we can't stop to dwell on it if we want to keep our sanity, especially when there are people out there who still need us. The best we can do is try to curb disaster as much as possible."

She nodded, looking up to the tunnel's end as though it was the bottom of a well. "I...I know that. But just...the thought of letting all those people die just to save a few... It sounds so cruel."

"It is, in a way. But it's a necessary sacrifice. You have to cut loose those you know you can't save if you want anyone to survive." He frowned. "If you manage to convince a cook to follow you, ask him if he's ever made _fu yung don_ without breaking any eggs."

She let out a breath, looking up at him finally. "I will. But people aren't eggs."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	17. Wings

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

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The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 17: Wings

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"We're gonna _what?_"

Sokka swallowed thickly, almost wincing at her voice. "You heard me."

"Oh I know I heard you," she growled. "I'm just wondering what kind of brain-eating parasite you ingested that would make you come up with something like that."

He looked to Zuko for a moment, hoping for some kind of support, but instead knew just by the boy's face that he was clearly on his own. "It isn't as crazy as it sounds, honest. The odds are a little nuts, but since when have numbers ever made or broken a battle?"

All three pairs of eyes continued to stare at him, wordlessly expectant. He smiled nervously at them, before striding over to where the glider rested on the fore deck. "Look, the Fire Nation has air power now. If we're going to stay in the game, we need to have it, too. And we do now. We always did."

"I hate to tell you," she said, "but getting into the air isn't going to be enough. We need to be able to do some damage up there. A lot of it. Just us against that whole fleet? You had to be hitting the cactus juice again."

"That's why I designed these different from the ones at the Western Air Temple." He stepped under the glider, gesturing to the uneven bars attached below the center of the wing. A pair of cables threaded through them, attached to each end of the wing canopy and dangling in loops from the bars. "Those, you needed to use the landing bar to steer, which meant you were out of luck if you had to use weapons or even bend."

He pulled on one of the loops, and the corresponding side of the wing canopy dipped toward the deck in response. "With these, you can steer and bank using your feet instead. Which leaves your hands free to actually do some damage." He gestured to the both of them. "You're both benders. And I can make a pointy weapon out of damn near anything as long as it splinters."

Zuko sighed, turning to Katara. "That...actually makes sense, if you think about it. Bending can do a hell of a lot of damage if you use it right." She frowned, looking from Zuko back to the glider.

"You saw how many there were."

"I know," Sokka said. "Believe me, I know the odds, and I know they're astronomically not in our favor. But when these guys are poised to flatten a city of a couple million people, I can't just have us sit back and let it happen. Not when..." He bit his lip to keep from saying it, taking another hard swallow before continuing. "Not when I know we can do something about it. Even if we fail, we can at least take a few down with us."

They each looked at him in heavy silence. Katara and Zuko both frowning in doubt and indecision while Iroh looked on with that passive, sitting-on-the-fence expression his grandmother always wore when she disapproved but didn't want to say so.

"Guys, I'm not saying we battle to the last balloon. If it starts getting too hot to handle, we'll retreat to safety with the citizens. But...we have to _try_."

More silence, the deck breeze tossing their hair about, scolding and cold. Zuko and Katara looked at each other, trading glances of apprehension. Iroh himself heaved a sigh, coming up and settling a hand on his shoulder.

"Your spirit is admirable. Your tenacity is enviable. But it takes more than those two qualities to be a leader. You must consider what you are asking, here. It isn't even the odds of winning, but the task itself." He paused, looking at him seriously. "In war, you either succeed or fail. There is no 'try.'"

Sokka swallowed again, looking back at Zuko and his sister. He knew the old man was right, much as he hated to admit it. He simply didn't want to word it as asking his comrades to throw themselves headlong at their own graves and pray to Kuruk they missed. But the look on his face was more telling than any words could be and he knew it, just by their answering expressions.

Zuko was the first to break the crushing silence, setting a hand on his other shoulder. "I'm in."

He cracked a tiny smile, looking over to Katara. She regarded both of them with a weighted look, before her brows narrowed and her hand joined Zuko's. "Me, too."

Sokka sighed as a surge of relief flooded through him, tempered with more than a touch of anxiety. The hard part had just begun.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Jin hunched over the walking stick Shen had given her as she followed Toph through the winding passage, holding a lantern aloft to see by. It was a small group that followed them, mostly composed of the people she'd spoken to in the square, including that strange-looking girl and her companion. They'd brought another friend, all three of them carrying sacks of supplies as they followed her to safety. But those groups had been steadily adding up over the course of days, and her last trip to Central Camp had seen at least a couple hundred refugees. Enough that they needed to start branching off from the main passage.

Toph herself had gone virtually silent after Aang had told her to stay back and help with the refugees, cold as the walls of the passages themselves, yet visibly stewing in that way all children did when ordered to stay out of the way. She hobbled up beside the girl, sighing.

"What's eating you?"

"What do you mean?" she snapped. "I'm fine."

She smiled a little, murmuring. "Being able to detect lies doesn't make you better at telling them, you know."

"It's nothing."

"Are you still angry over what the Avatar told you?"

Toph stopped short, but her hard expression didn't change. "What are you talking about?"

"You know better."

She lowered her head, fists clenching and teeth gritting for a moment. "He gets to make a last glorious stand for the city while I get to hide underground like a volerat. Just because it's an air battle and I can't hit things that aren't on the ground. This place is about to be bombed to pebbles and there isn't a damn thing I can do."

Jin stopped, resting that free hand on her shoulder and swallowing thickly. "He doesn't think you're useless, Toph. He knows the capable warrior you are. He wouldn't be learning from you if he didn't. But he also knows this is not a battle you have an advantage in, and rather than let you get hurt unnecessarily, he's giving you an equally important task that you are best suited to."

Toph raised her head, her eyes shining a bit in the glow of the lantern. "What do you mean?"

"Helping the refugees to safety. Guiding them through the tunnels. The earth is your element, you know it better than anyone alive. You can navigate this labyrinth without need of a map, and getting those we can rescue to safety down here will be of greater importance than an extra fighter up there. Even if he could fight back that entire fleet by himself, it would do no good if the attack leaves no survivors. All his effort will have been for naught."

Toph did her best to stifle the hard sniff as her shoulders slumped, though she made no reply. Jin held her walking stick out further ahead, illuminating more of the tunnel. "This war is far from over, child. Even if you sit this one out, there will be other chances for you to join the fray."

"None of them could count as much as this one."

Jin frowned, wishing for a moment that the girl could see her expression rather than simply hear her. "I doubt that. The fighting ahead will be just as integral." She quieted, speaking more to herself than to her companion. "Perhaps even moreso."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"We have the battlements ready, Avatar. But at the moment, I'm afraid there isn't much more we can do to prepare until they arrive."

Aang nodded, stepping out to the edge of the wall. "I know. And I'm not expecting anything we do to be enough."

General Sung strode up beside him, frowning. "Then why all this effort when you know you can't win?"

His eyes narrowed as he scanned the horizon, calm but determined as ever. "You know about positive and negative _jin_, I'm assuming."

"Well yes, but...what's that have to do with this?"

"A friend of mine told me a while ago of a third, one that was neither negative nor positive. Neutral _jin_. It's what happens when you don't retreat or attack, but lie in wait for the right time to strike."

Sung arched a brow, confused, but nonetheless interested. "But aren't you attacking?"

Aang shook his head. "Hardly. Right now, the Fire Nation air fleet has positive _jin_ since they're on the offensive. Since we're evacuating people into the tunnels, we're technically retreating, even if we don't actually leave the city. We're just falling back deeper into it. If we do nothing else, that'll leave us with negative _jin_. So we need to do something to balance it out to neutral."

His mouth set itself in a hard line. "Mounting an attack when you're being attacked first is _defending_. Even if we don't win, we can't just run away. We can't let the Fire Nation think that we're ready to give up without a fight."

"General Sung!"

Bith of them turned to the voice, which belonged to a young soldier not much older than Zuko, waving frantically with one hand and pointing behind him with the other. Sung's face drained of color as they both saw what he was raving about.

A towering plume of dark smoke rose into the air from one of the watchtowers further along the wall. Aang swallowed thickly, murmuring. "That...That means only a hundred, right? We can take a hundred..."

Sung nodded absently, and it was all the boy needed to pull out and open his glider, readying himself to dive off the wall. A hundred balloons was nothing. He'd leveled more ships at the North Pole. This was going to be easy enough. Until the general's hand clapped tight over his shoulder, and he looked back up to see him pointing again at the distant watchtower's signal.

Two more plumes slowly rose to flank the first. A trio of deadly harbingers.

He gulped, looking out toward the darkening horizon. All he saw against the crimson of the setting sun was a dark red line of what looked like a cloud reflecting the dimming rays. But as he squinted and shook off the general's hand to step forward, he saw it more clearly. And knew with a sickening dread what he was looking at.

Over a thousand of them assembled. The front line of the most massive airborne army he would ever live to see. His heart crashed down somewhere around his stomach and refused to get back up.

"Load and make ready!" Sung commanded.

Aang looked up at him, almost wanting to take back everything he'd just told him. Sung seemed to read those thoughts, shaking his head.

"Not without a fight." He turned back to face his battallion, who had the trebuchets ready to go. "Ready!"

They poised the counterweights, staring dead ahead. Sung turned around to face the sky again, crouching and stretching his arm out in front of him.

"Aim!"

The seconds ticked by endlessly. Aang stared down the distant army, silently daring it as they drew closer. Until at last he could see the shapes of the balloons themselves, and the black symbol of the nation emblazoned on their canopies. Sung made a decisive chop at the air.

"Fire!"

The sound of creaking wood assaulted his ears as the trebuchets loosed their stones, and he bit his lip watching. The volley of rocks arcked toward them, and he saw an entire line drop from the red cloud like an ominous rain.

Sung repeated his command for the second volley, only giving them less than two seconds between aiming and firing as it became clear just how fast the red army was approaching. And again, another line of them fell.

The knot that had been slowly building in Aang's stomach solidified as he turned to Sung. "You won't be able to keep this up for long. They'll be out of your range soon."

"I know. That's why the archery line is coming up to the wall now. Even if we can deflate the balloons themselves, we'll be in good shape." He forced a weak smile. "Worry not, Avatar. We'll handle it."

It did nothing to assuage the sinking feeling in Aang's heart. Trebuchets were one thing. They were at least somewhat effective and quick. Archers... It could take as many as 20 shots to bring down a single balloon and he knew it.

"No," he said. "I'll handle it."

"Are you out of your head?"

"The archers won't be nearly enough. If I'm supposed to have the power to stop the Fire Nation, there's no better time to test it out."

He didn't wait for a reply as he popped his glider open, mounting it and diving off the wall toward the red death cloud.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	18. Demon Wind

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 18: Demon Wind

* * *

He'd never felt so much apprehension in his life as the sea of war machines sprawled before him. But even that feeling was shadowed and dwarfed by determination and anger. How dare they. How dare they invade _his_ sky and use its power to bring down the last crowning jewel of the world. They wouldn't be getting away with it, that was for damn sure.

First thing, he knew, was that he had to slow down their advance as much as possible. And unlike the ships at the North Pole, the ocean which these vessels sailed on _was_ his element. He relaxed, making his limbs as flexible as possible before letting go of the glider and using one hand to swing himself up to stand atop it on the main beam.

Crouching low in stance, he spread his arms wide, swooping them up in a circle and bringing his hands forward in a rush.

The air obeyed, surging toward the front line in a massive wall of a headwind. They crashed backward into their fellow balloons, pilots and crew scrambling with the steering system to right themselves and failing utterly.

He took advantage of the confusion, using his hand to bend a quick helping draft and banking sharply to the left. Skirting as close as possible to the front line.

It felt like an airborne minefield. Every wrong turn was a disaster. Around every bend was a fireblast waiting to fry him on the spot. He was one lonely clay pigeon in the largest shooting gallery the world would ever witness.

He dove and swooped between ropes and whips and exploding fireballs as the crew manning each balloon tried their best to bring him down and ultimately missed both him and his glider in their panic. He couldn't quite say the same for himself, as the sharp end of the wing tore into canopy after canopy with an unmistakeable sound. Followed by screaming as the balloons themselves began to drift toward the ground with a rush of escaping wind.

He assured himself mentally as he diverted course to do the same to the other end of the line. This was going to be easier than he thought. Especially when a third rain of trebuchet fire from the outermost wall decimated the fourth line of balloons.

By now, they'd resumed advancing with the dissipation of the headwind, tacking into the remaining current. Aang looked back at the edge of the outer wall, feeling his heart sink as the gap between it and the army in front of him slowly narrowed. He swallowed thickly, righting himself and sucking in a huge breath as he banked toward the current front line.

He let it go as he raced past them, crouching on the foot behind him and sweeping both arms around front. The balloons shoved obediently backward as he kept breathing and blowing hard at them, amplifying the wind with his stance. He banked again once he cleared the line, angling the glider so the wingtip would again tear through the skins of the balloons.

But this time, no fiery attacks came. And he saw the reason as soon as he leveled off to turn around again.

Even as the ones he'd just damaged spiraled to the ground far below, the remaining craft pushed themselves further apart, shifting each whole row with small, perfectly synchronized and channeled fireblasts. Until the formation resembled a checkerboard rather than a phalanx, with a one-unit gap between each balloon and those cardinally flanking it.

And a moment later, he knew why.

One of the crew played lookout while the other two steered and propelled the balloon with calculated fireblasts. Large ones that the gaps between units were needed for lest they incinerate their comrades. Forward. Faster. Absolutely unstoppable. Aang felt his chest choke up. The front lines would be out of effective range of the trebuchets in no time.

He flipped back under his glider again, not even bothering with a headwind that he knew they could easily overtake now, especially by pulling that tacking maneuver again. Instead, he sought the balloon skins, determined to rip through as many as humanly possible.

Yet they'd gotten smarter on him. The vents of the first line's canopies opened, just enough to bring them under Aang and out of danger before closing and regaining their altitude. One after the other, staggered and spread out to reduce the wind's impact.

He couldn't believe it. In a matter of a couple hours, a whole army had adapted its strategy into something not even the Avatar himself could hope to slow down. The crushing weight of what he'd known since he'd first stared into that chasm filled with workers bore down on his heart now. It didn't matter whether he stayed and fought or ran away like a petulant child. Once again, he was letting the world down. Letting the last hope of the world be bombed to ruins.

_No!_

He swooped with a sudden burst of speed, flying in the fastest circle he could manage. Tight at first but slowly expanding, swirling the air itself with his glider into a wide, spinning column of roaring wind. The balloons around him followed suit, the crew's fireblasts snuffed out in the vacuum and the balloon itself caught helplessly into the invisible eddy. If he couldn't hold them off, perhaps he could hold them back.

_Not this city. Not today_.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

_By the pagoda grove on the north side of the outer wall, between the roots of the one tree that looked like a dragon's claw_.

Iroh sighed, coming up to the grove itself and wiping a hand over his forehead. As much as he loved his nephew, the boy was lousy about directions. Though considering his life, he supposed it came with the territory.

_Find the knot that looks like an eye_.

He edged around the great trunk, as it was one of the thickest, oldest pagodas he'd ever seen, scanning the bark carefully until he located the mark that indeed looked like the eye of a dragon. Long and elliptical, with a slit of an iris and a stare that made the tree itself come alive with its own power. But even upon a closer look, it took him a moment to realize that the mark was not a scar from a long forgotten storm, but a carving, dug into a circular plug of wood.

_Pull out the stopper. Use a twig to pry it if you need to_.

He searched the forest floor for a bit, finding a thin, splintered twig with a fine end, and using it to jar the carved plug loose. It took him a few tries, but he managed it, revealing a long leather strap attached to the end. Arching a brow in curiosity, he gave the stopper a sound tug.

A loud creek sounded from under his feet, great wooden hinges squealing in protest. He jumped back, feeling the very piece of ground he was standing on start to give way, slowly revealing a yawning dark tunnel. He looked down into it, noting the musty smell of hewn earth and fertile soil. So much had he heard about the old headquarters, but he'd never actually seen it before now. Torn between awe and apprehension, he sucked in a breath and descended.

A long metal pole leaned against the wall of the tunnel inside, presumably to push the hatch closed. He did just that, lighting a small ball of fire in one hand as it cast him into inky, thick darkness. The cold hit him immediately. The complete absence of not only sunlight, but any light at all made him shiver, and he flared the fire a little brighter and hotter to compensate.

The tunnel itself was respectably long and very wide, and the hatch sealed slightly offset, allowing a breeze to flood in. It had to be one of the many venting tunnels Zuko had indicated. He held the fire aloft and started forward. Not that there was any other direction to go.

It felt like hours of passing nothing but hollowed rock walls, the occasional insect or sightless mammal scurrying by. Of course, it very well could've been. He knew the vastness of the city better than any general. Or anyone in the Fire Nation military period, for that matter. Few things acquainted one with the size of a settlement betterthan besieging it for almost two years.

Yet the entrance to the tunnel network was the only thing Zuko could give him directions for. He knew nothing else. Not that Iroh could fault him. Firebending was severely lacking in clairvoyance techniques. Not like Earthbending, which he didn't doubt for a moment the Avatar's little friend could very well read minds with. But at the moment, he couldn't do much except press on, going in the general direction toward the city's center. Or where he surmised the city's center was.

And it wasn't long before he heard footsteps in the tunnel up ahead.

He stopped. Listened. Wary.

They were most certainly a man's. A heavy gait, but determined and calculating, as though knowing exactly where he was headed despite the absence of sun or compass or light to read one by. The steps of a man with a map and purpose, neither of which he could lose easily.

"Avatar Aang?"

The sound paused, and a flare of fire blazed up ahead, answering his own

"Not the Avatar, but I hope a lowly Captain won't be too disappointing."

Iroh squinted into the inky darkness, making out the telltale shape and colors of Fire Nation battle armor, and the sharp lines and proud height of a senior field officer. And as he came closer, he made out the rough angles of a pale face, aged far more than he knew it ever should be judging from the man's voice. It was all familiar in a way, like a smudged engraving he knew he should recognize even if he could barely see it. Though it took him a few moments, those dark hazel eyes gave him away entirely.

"Lei?"

The man stopped dead in his tracks, blinking hard, face blanching for a moment. No small feat, considering his pallor rivaled pampered nobility.

"Y-Yes..." He bowed low, with an audibly hard swallow. "Captain Shen Lei, of the Second Taifeng Infantry. It's...It's an honor to see you again, General Iroh."

He smiled, waving the notion away. "We can dispense with the formalities. I have not been regarded as such for quite some time."

Shen reddened a bit, averting his gaze to the ground as he straightened up. "I suppose so, yes. I haven't exactlyt been a Captain of much in the meantime, either."

Iroh felt an internal shiver lace his spine at that, and his brow arched in intrigue. "What brings you down here?"

Shen pulled up the sleeve of his tunic, revealing the inside of his arm with a weary sigh. "Official business."

Iroh glanced from the tattoo to Shen's face and back again, a few times, the meeting he'd had in a certain flower shop coming back to him.

_There are two from the Outer Circle in Ba Sing Se. One will arrange your cover in the city. The other, you will only meet if you need his aid. For your sake and ours, I pray it does not come to that._

He sighed inwardly. If only the man had known...

"I see. Zhu's brainchild is well underway, then."

Shen nodded, turned to the yawning passage behind him. "Central Camp is a pretty good walk from this end. Thanks to your warning, we've been taking in refugees by the score."

"That's good to hear," Iroh murmured, relieved. "May I trouble you as a guide? I'm afraid I won't be of much help wandering around and lost."

"Of course," Shen nodded, bowing once again. He smiled weakly. "Zhu would be most displeased if I didn't put the project to good use."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

In his heart, he knew it was hopeless.

There were far too many of them.

But his mind refused to accept it.

He circled the battle plane once more, the vacuum from his speeding glider sweeping another half line of balloons into the chaptic vortex he'd been building, makeshift propulsion and all. He was not going to give the last hope of winning this war up to them so easily just because victory was one hell of a long shot.

_Even if we fail, at least we tried_.

The balloon crews made a valiant effort to right their craft between attacks flung from the wall, both archer and trebuchet, and he wished with everything in him that he had rocks or even water of his own to make use of. Other than throwing the balloons into each other, there weren't too many ways to bring the craft down with nothing but wind.

But on his next pass, he saw it. Felt the air itself surge with an all too familiar energy. The very sky pulse with tension. And the clouds tremble at the command of a master whose presence he would know anywhere.

They began to flow and gather like the ocean, surging between the craft as waves, flattening and and hardening into fine, razor-thin shards of ice. Deadly tips glistening in the dimming twilight. Hovering in wait. Until finally they swept in all directions, slicing through rope and canopy and basket like a cloud of sickles through a rice paddy. The sound of scared crewman barking orders as they scrambled to get off their doomed craft safely followed in the wake.

He turned, and felt his stomach flutter in relief. In the distance, three large hang gliders swept in on a thermal gust, the wings of each displaying a bright blue arrow. They were too far away for him to make out the faces of the pilots, but he didn't have to.

_It's not your destiny to do it alone, Avatar. We're behind you, because it's our fight as well._

He looked back at the back lines of the advancing army, brows narrowed in determination.

_Thanks, guys. And I won't let you down. If we're going under, we're taking them with us_.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	19. The Final Stand

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 19: The Final Stand

* * *

The only thing keeping Zuko's panic in check was the thought that if this went badly enough, he was free to beat the everloving daylights out of Sokka once they were back on solid ground. And that Katara would be more than willing to help him. Provided they were still alive by then, of course.

That possibility was looking pretty remote as he swooped under an incoming fireblast, loosing one of his own in answer at the shooter. He barely managed to dodge the return fire, though he chalked that up to using most of his willpower not to panic.

_It's not a trebuchet, Zuko. It's a hang glider. You can control it_.

His stare hardened in affirmation of that thought, flinging a wide, arcking whip of bright orange flame at an incoming line of balloons. It sliced into their canopies with a roar, eating away at the cloth as what was left of the craft began to drift to the ground.

He had hardly a moment to look up before another volley of fireblasts made him angle into a sharp, evasive dive. It was weird bending only with his arms, and the control needed to control his feet so as not to bank when he didn't want to challenged even his level of discipline. But it was certainly better than not bending at all. He climbed back up to return fire, sweeping his arm and sending a wide arc of flame their way.

"Zuko! Behind you!"

He barely had time to look before a razor-sharp metal blade flew past his ear, and a curse rang out behind him. He turned, seeing a man in an armored Major's attire clutching his heavily bleeding hand while his crewmates attempted to aid him. Ahead of him, Sokka swooped in on a more powerful gust, brandishing one of the crude knives he'd fashioned.

_They have my back. It's okay. I've just gotta bring down as many as I can_.

He huffed in a breath, spreading one of his palms flat in front of him, drawing it in a wide arc of flame and wrapping the end around his hand and wrist. The next line of poised craft raced closer, and his other arm shot forward as he bore down on them while he wrapped the other end around his free hand and held the flames taut. As he neared the final approach, he held front of him, feeling only the tiniest resistance as it sliced through each canopy before he pulled up to evade retaliation.

He split the arc into a fire whip for each hand, banking around again to the front lines of the fleet, cruising between the first and second. The staggered formation was hardly a contest as he flung one whip, then the other in timed cracks, snapping cable and tearing through canopy in a rhythm of crashing and hissing.

The gap between them and the front wall had shrunk considerably, to were he could make out the individual archers in the line, and see the ammunition pages darting between to make sure nobody was left with a bow and nothing to fire. If anything, they had to slow down the front of the fleet more than the back of it. The fewer able craft to reach bombing range, the better.

He pulled out of the cruise, joining the far ends of his whips and letting go of the one in his left as he banked for the head of the next line. Huffing in a huge breath of the thinnest air to ever enter his lungs, he loosed the now gigantically long whip as far down the line as he could get it.

The noise was unbelievable. A crack of monstrous thunder as the shock of the whip split the air itself. Several of those unlucky enough to man their doomed craft had to cover their ears with an outraged wince of pain, a precious few seconds of being allowed a human weakness before they tried desperately to regain control of their vessels.

It was then that he felt the cold bite of ice crystals across his face, and looked up to see a fellow glider preparing to mow down the next line.

Katara swept in toward him, pulling the water from her skin and freezing the end of the whip into a harpoon-like spike. He watched her ready it, narrowing one eye as she drew back her arm and took aim for the line of balloons he'd just passed.

And that's when he saw it.

One of them moved up behind her, manned by three infantrymen, or so their uniforms told him. An old captain and two privates, each looking about his own age. The former raised his hand in a readying gesture, and his two fearful-looking subordinates each took stance for a fireblast. Aimed right for her back.

They would fire at any moment. Even if he brought the craft down, they would not be adverse to taking a last shot rather than put on the escape parachutes. He could not give them a chance.

There was no time to think. Only to take in a powering breath, sighting along his arm and channeling as much energy as he could into his fist until it started to smoke between his clenched fingers. He narrowed his eyes at the craft, even as his arm shook. It would be okay. They wouldn't be able to return fire or feel pain. There wouldn't be time.

He opened his fist, relaxing his chest to absorb the recoil as the canon-like blast rushed toward the craft. The flames cleared scarcely a moment later in the thin air, revealing charred scraps of canopy and basket and rope falling down toward the trees. No sign of the men who had been on board. A part of him wondered if a split second was long enough to suffer. The rest of him just shook in revulsion at the thought and didn't want to know the answer.

He felt sick.

_It's war._

_They're still people. It's still life._

_Better theirs than yours._

_Can I really be that selfish?_

_Okay, better theirs than hers_.

As much as he tried, he couldn't bring himself to argue with that.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

She let the harpoon fly, watched it pierce through balloon after balloon, racing above the line and swooping down to catch it after it cleared the last one. The moon rose on her left, the light fading at her right, and she welcomed the answering surge of strength. If they were going to attack near nightfall, it was obvious to her they hadn't anticipated help from a Waterbender. Not that she minded having the element of surprise.

Certainly not as she dove through an impressive volley of attack fire, both fireblasts from the advancing fleet, and arrows from the walls of the defending city. In a way, fighting at night was easier. They could see her even worse than she could see them, since they would have to reveal their position if they wanted to attack.

She broke the harpoon into separate shards as she approached another line, splaying her fingers and shoving her hands forward. The ice daggers flew off, tearing through the cables of each balloon and sending the baskets plumetting as the crew scrambled for parachutes.

She looked back at the wall, anger flaring at the rapidly closing gap. They had to do something to slow the fleet's advance, not just chip off the leading edge. A brush of wind from below made her turn to see a rather white-faced Zuko climbing up on her left.

"This isn't working," she said. "We're doing damage, but they're still gaining."

He nodded, surveying the gap. She could see the dark outlines of the archers as they fired another volley of arrows, and the men loading the trebuchets to hit the back lines. There was maybe another ten miles between the front line and the wall. With their current rate, the first bombs would be dropping in a couple hours. She narrowed her eyes, thoughtful for a moment.

"Go find Aang. I think I have a way to slow them, but I need his help."

"What are you going to do?"

"You'll see. Trust me, I just need his help."

He frowned, but nodded, swooping away from her.

Clouds were just water. And they were all around them. Why she didn't think to use this earlier, she'd never guess. Aang cruised up beside her a few minutes later, more serious than she thought he was capable of until today.

"What's your plan?"

"Back at the North Pole," she murmured, "the walls meant the Fire Navy ships had to either break them down or file in through a narrow passage."

"Well yeah, but...we don't really have walls, here."

"We have clouds, though."

He arched a brow at her, as if she'd grown bat wings and a spiked tail. "Clouds aren't walls. Not very good ones, anyway."

"No. But they're made of water."

He looked at her, then at the fluffy clouds of which she spoke. When he met her gaze again, a smile had spread the breadth of his face. "You? Are a genius."

She smiled back. "I just need you to help me. Grab Sokka and go about five hundred yards ahead to the left flank. We'll have five minutes to build the wall, but I think that's enough time. And they'll hit it before they realize what we're doing. I'll grab Zuko and take the right flank."

He nodded, giving her a salute before banking off to find Sokka. She dove off to get Zuko, catching up to him as he flung a fire whip at another ill-fated balloon. She cupped her hands around her mouth, yelling for him.

"Zuko!"

He looked up in surprise, catching a thermal to cruise up beside her. "What is it?"

"Follow me. Aang and I have a plan to slow the fleet, but we need you and Sokka to be out of the way."

He shook his head in confusion, but did as told. What do you mean out of the way?"

"On the right flank," she said. "Far enough ahead of the front line."

His lips pursed. "Do I _want_ to know?"

"You'll find out in a minute whether you do or not. Just be ready to start cutting into the fray in the next five minutes."

He seemed to accept that as a given as she looked across the expanse of sky to Aang, who gave her the signal. The both of them dove in a crisscrossing pattern ahead of the front lines, gathering and pushing massive rolls of cloud into a thick, fluffy wall in front of the advancing fleet. She brought up another floor of cloud cover under the balloons while Aang began to freeze the wall itself into a solid block of suspended ice, and she spread the white clouds as far under the fleet as she could.

_It'll be too dangerous to go under the wall with no visibility. They'll have to go around it. And Zuko and Sokka will be waiting for them._

A grin spread across her face as the front line squashed into the wall, crewman scrambling in suirprise and those in the second line desperately switching to front propulsion to avoid a similar fate. The domino effect was apparent, up through the first twenty lines of what little formation was left, each desperately trying not to crash into the one before it. To no avail. Even if they were moving slow, wind-driven momentum was not an easy thing to overcome in a precious few seconds.

_And nobody expects a five-foot thick wall of ice in the middle of the sky._

And that was only the beginning. She grinned, waiting just a couple seconds more before squaring her hands and shoving her arms forward.

A sharp sound of rushing air and ripping fabric answered as a line of diamond-shaped spikes jutted from the wall foour lines deep, piercing the balloons smashed up against it and tearing the tops of them as they deflated on the spike's razor-sharp spine. The weight of the basket and crew and equipment did the rest, as the entire first four lines drifted to the ground far below.

She swept past Zuko, trading glances as the remaining lines stabilized themselves and the flanks began to break off around the barrier. His eyes narrowed in understanding, blazing twin fire whips back into his hands and turning back to the fray.

She let out a sigh of relief to counter her sinking heart as he met the outflow. He was only one. No way was it going to be enough. But for now, it was all they could do to buy the city and their friends on the ground more time.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Night had fallen. It was both a blessing and a curse, for while it provided him and his friends with cover and put a natural damper on the enemy's bending ability, it was also dark, which made aiming harder and did not grant any bending advantage to those who lacked the gift.

Such as himself.

All he had were some crude but serviceable weapons that he'd fashioned on board the stol-- _commandeered_, he corrected himself -- corvette. A boomerang that he knew for a fact could never replace the one lying in a Dai Li prison inventory somewhere, a machete that somewhat resembled his old one, and a collection of daggers that were really just tiny metal throwing shards sharpened to a nice, hair-splitting edge.

But it was still him against the entire left flank. For the first time since he'd finished the gliders, he felt the same weight on his heart that his sister and Zuko no doubt were wrestling with. He coasted in close to an incoming craft, lashing out at the top of the canopy where he knew the greatest pressure was built. A roar of hot wind greeted him, and he used it as a convenient thermal to speed away from the rapidly descending craft.

_One down. Eight hundred more to go_.

He couldn't think about that. If he did, he'd be far too tempted to land his glider and go scurrying into the nearest tunnel for cover. All he could allow himself to concentrate on was how to do as much damage as possible in the shortest time.

He glanced over to the right flank that Zuko was tearing into, fire whips blazing against the night sky as he decimated balloon after balloon, leaving them to drift back to the ground in an eerie rain. If he had one of his own, not even a fire whip, just a regular one with something sharp on the end...

He looked down at the wrappings on his arms. He had plenty of daggers left. It wouldn't take much.

With a flurry of movement he unwrapped one arm, twisting the strip of cloth to thread into the storage loops on the knives and quickly knotting each one in place along the length of it. Until he had a long, crudely fashioned whip bristling with sharp edges.

He swung back around with a yell, flinging the weapon hard at another balloon and letting the tail of it coast into the canopy of its flank. The fabric tore like a cheap tent, the frame shuddering with the force of the blow. Relief flooded him as they both went down easily, that confident grin returning. This was it. He had the advantage once again.

Now it was just a matter of staying alive long enough to use it.

He straightened his legs, banking and diving to avoid fresh fireblasts while tearing into craft after craft. It didn't matter if they went down immediately. If they were too preoccupied with surviving an impending crash to make themselves useful in combat, he considered it a success. And there were a lot of successes to be had when he was wielding the equivalent of a five-foot-long serrated knife.

But even still, he was just one guy. And that became increasingly evident as more of the flank broke off from the main formation. Instead of handling two in a line, he was facing three and four. And at least one was getting past him every turn. Overwhelming his effort with sheer numbers. As he knew they would eventually.

A look back at the city wall confirmed his dread. Less than four miles away. And on the edge of his vision, the right flank had adapted the same idea and Zuko himself wasn't faring much better. All they'd done was postpone the inevitable.

_Even if we fail, at least we tried..._

He took out a third balloon with the next crack of his whip, feeling a damnable prickling at the corners of his eyes. He'd convinced his friends to go flying headlong into certain death all for a city that was going to be utterly destroyed no matter what they did. They were going to have to abort the mission soon and take cover regardless. They'd tried, all right. It just wasn't enough. Zuko was right vand dammit, he should've know better.

_There is no try._

Only success or failure, and he knew it. It didn't matter that just the four of them had managed to chop the fleet down by four hundred units. Or that his friends were pulling off some of the most powerful bending the world had ever witnessed. They still failed and people were going to die.

He could only hope they'd forgive him back on the ground.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"We can keep the tunnels open until the bombs actually start dropping in that area," Shen murmured, sighing wearily. "We at least have to keep an entrance open for the Avatar to come back to."

Jin frowned, turning to Iroh. "Do you think he'll have the sense to drop the mission before it's too late?"

The old man nodded as they made their way to the nearest city entrance. "He's young, yes. And while he may be brash with his own life, he is loath to endanger the lives of his loved ones as readily. He'll abort for their sake before his own."

"The survivor count is about four hundred fifty," Lao spoke up. "That's barely a fraction of the quadrant, nevermind the whole city. But those are the only ones who would listen."

"And supplies?" Jin asked.

"We have enough to last a couple of weeks down here. Which should be enough if all the fleet intends to do is bomb everything to pieces up there. We'll be vented by the exit tunnels outside the city, which we can use to get out once everything is clear."

"Good, good," Shen said, seeming to relax somewhat. "You and I will head to the entrance to warn more people as long as we can." He turned to Jin. "You head back to Central Camp with Master Iroh. There are going to be a lot of scared people down there." She nodded, turning to make her way back down the tunnel as they parted, Iroh following her with a blazing palm to light their way.

"How is your ankle?" he asked.

"It doesn't hurt as much," she grunted, shifting her weight more on the walking stick. "I should be able to walk on it normally in a day or two."

"The Avatar has a skilled healer of the Water Tribe among his friends. When they come back, I'm sure she could help you."

"I'd be very grateful," she said, stopping to rest on the wall for a moment.

He smiled. "I never thanked you for taking my nephew on that night out."

She blinked at him. "You're kidding. That was just a cover, wasn't it? So he wouldn't suspect?"

"For the most part. But he did enjoy himself, and he hasn't had an opportunity like that in a very long time."

A red blush dusted her cheeks, and she averted her eyes down the tunnel. "I'm glad for that. He's a nice boy. He's just..."

"...Clueless?" Iroh offered.

She nodded, unable to help a smile as she pushed off the wall. "Not quite the right word, but I think it comes close enough."

It was then that they heard it. The faintest sound of roaring air and crumbling stone, and a moment later a strong tremor shook the earth above their heads and beneath their feet. Iroh caught her arm as she fought to keep her already precarious footing, and her heart sank utterly with the realization of what had made that sound.

"It's starting," he said. "Come on."

She nodded, using his shoulder for support as she hobbled as quickly as she could toward the camp.

TO BE CONCLUDED...


	20. The Fall of Ba Sing Se

Disclaimer: I own not, you sue not.

* * *

The Chong Sheng Trilogy

PART I: War

Chapter 20: The Fall of Ba Sing Se

* * *

_They're crazy._

It repeated in his mind like those mantras Iroh made him chant during training to help him focus.

_They're crazy. They're crazy. They're crazy. They're crazy._

It was a surreal vision, watching the first four lines of the entire fleet impale themselves on near invisible spikes and drop to the earth like dandelion seeds. Almost like he was watching it happen outside his body. Watching the flank begin to break off and head toward him. Feeling his arms move on reflex to engage them, fire whips blazing across the night sky and tearing into them with a vengeance he didn't recognize.

They didn't even seem to care that he was there. Drifted right past him if his whip didn't catch him. Didn't waste time trying to shoot at him, because he was too insignificant to slow them down and they knew it. He was nothing. They could overwhelm him with nothing but their own volume, and he'd be powerless to stop it.

He knew this. And it made no difference as he dove and cracked his whips in a heavy rhythm of sizzling flame and roaring wind. It was hopeless, and yet he didn't care. Not when all he could see was the look on Sokka's face when he'd tried to dissuade him. That grim determination to do everything in his power to save as many people as he could.

_Never give up without a fight_...

No. He wasn't going to.

The very thought made a surge of strength race up his spine like a rising serpent, and he swirled the whips in his hands as Iroh had done to the door at the temple, creating a strong thermal gust that surged him through the ranks of balloons. He slashed at the cables of each craft rather than the canopies, tearing through more and smaller targets and not letting himself look back as the basket with its three crewmen plumeted to the ground below.

The air itself began to shudder with a thunderous rumble, and he looked up to see the portion of the fleet still behind the wall moving, gathering back into plalanx formation near the center of the barrier. The lead crew took a stance he knew all too well, staring down the ice before loosing a wave of fireblasts. Large ones that exploded from their hands with the roar and force of a heavy cannon.

The wall shuddered under the impact, ice shards flying into the wind as Katara and Aang swooped and dove in a desperate attempt to repair it before the next blast. He refused to let his heart sink no matter how much it wanted to. It would only be a matter of time before the wall came down, and he knew it.

But there was still time. And as long as that was so, they were going to fight.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Nothing got more people to listen, Lao concluded, faster than hands-on experience. And so it was that when the ground began to shake and sound exploded in the distance and giant pillars of smoke rose within the walls of the city like the fingers of a buried demon, people who had previously blown off his warnings as the ramblings of one who'd spent too long in the sun were now buying supplies with whatever they had on them and flocking toward the nearest entrance.

The other troops funneled them away into the recesses of the tunnels in a line such that nobody could lose their way because it backed up all the way to the entrance. He didn't want to think of how large the camp had grown in the last ten minutes as he and Shen herded them in to cover.

"We can't keep this open too much longer," he said. "The minute a bomb falls within fifty feet of here, we have to close down."

"I know," Shen replied. "But we're going to get in as many as possible. We have to." He recited the line as though from memory, eyes glazed and distracted, staring through people and buildings rather than at them. In the way people did when their bodies were in front of you, but their minds were somewhere far away and unreachable.

"Sir?"

He jumped, startled, staring at him for a moment and sheepishly getting back to work. But there was no hiding the tremor in his hands from one who had watched over him on nights the rest of the battallion dared not approach. He sighed, resting a hand on Shen's arm.

"What is it?"

His captain visibly fought the urge to falter at the sound of another bomb in the distance. "After all this time, I never thought he would be...here."

Lao swallowed thickly, knowing the tightness in that voice and feeling his own throat grow taught in sympathy. "It's unexpected for all of us. But at the moment we don't have time to stop and dwell on it."

"I know," Shen said. But the look in his eyes betrayed just how much of his attention was lost to it. Lao frowned, reaching down to squeeze his hand in comfort.

The line of refugees disappeared into the tunnel for the first moment in half an hour, and Lao suspected most of the surrounding district had been evacuated by nothing but word of mouth. Yet they stood at the yawning entrance, scanning the empty streets for anyone else. The sound of artillery drew ever closer. They could smell the after-stench of exploded blasting jelly and the metallic tang of shrapnel, so strong Lao found he could just about taste it on the wind. It turned his stomach.

But not nearly as much as the look in his superior's eyes.

He frowned. "I think he might understand, you know."

Shen shook his head. "I would never expect that of him. If I thought myself forgivable, I wouldn't have spent almost a decade living like a badgermole."

"You don't have to tell him, you know. None of us will, you can trust that. Take it to your grave if you wish."

Shen finally looked up, meeting his eyes with a gaze worn beyond that of any man his age. "I was hoping to be in it before I ever faced him again."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Something told her this wasn't such a great idea anymore. It could've been the way her arms and fingers ached as she fought to repair the cracks in the wall from each new volley of fire. Or that a glance to either flank made her heart sink like a derelict ship seeing Zuko and her brother each fighting a hopelessly lost battle. But more likely, it was the sound of bombs already dropping over the city's outer wall.

They had already failed. The most she could hope for was to lessen the destruction somewhat. But even that possibility was looking pretty remote as the wall buckled dangerously, and it took a combined effort between her and Aang to refreeze it. Ice shards hung everywhere around them, glistening under the moon and and clinging to her clothes and hair. She had to do something to slow their rate of fire and give her more time between strikes to exact repairs. That, of course, meant taking out some of the front lines without compromising the wall's already slim integrity any further.

Fortunately, she thought, ice was as bendable as water. She turned to Aang as they crossed flight paths again. "You hold the wall. I'm going to try and get rid of more of them."

He opened his mouth to protest, likely to ask her which part of her mind she'd lost. But he thought better of it, just nodding instead before banking off.

She turned back to the wall, flexing her hands and starting to circle in front of the barrier as Aang handled the repair. Higher above it, shoving her arms out to her sides like wings, fingers spread wide. The flying ice needles stopped where they hung in mid-air, held in place for a moment that made the hair on her neck stand up.

She stared down the front line behind the wall, moonlight glinting off the million tiny weapons like a field of deadly stars. A few crooks of her fingers, and they lengthened. And sharpened.

The corner of her mouth lifted in a grin. They would never see it coming.

She swept her arms down. The shards followed, racing and tearing into the unsuspecting army in a savage rain, the moonlight glittering on the sharp ends the only clue to what was happening. Not that it mattered. A craft the size of a two-story house had absolutely no hope of outmaneuvering a weapon the size of her index finger. And especially not an entire cloud layer full of them.

She never thought the sound of grown men screaming could be so pleasant.

The fireblasts immediately ceased, as there were more important things to do right now than smash a four-foot-thick wall of ice. Like get parachutes ready. Not that it would do them much good when they were jumping headlong into a cloud of sharp, barely visible danger. But humans were creatures of habit, she reasoned. They would obey their training to the letter, for in a panic, fuzzy logic would be the last thing to cross their minds.

_You're out of your element_.

Indeed. An air attack at nighttime. Obviously, whoever planned this disaster had not expected to face a Waterbender. For the moment, the sound of bombs dropping faded into the background. It didn't matter.

Not when she she was holding back a full standing fleet with a literal wave of her arms.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"This is the one we're keeping open for them," Suki said as she followed Toph up the tunnel, tucking the flare launcher into her armor. "If they come flying back this way, we shoot this off to tell them where to go."

"And what if they don't?"

"They will," Suki said. "They have to. This is the closest entrance to the wall."

"That's not what I mean," Toph replied, folding her arms as she leaned her back against the stone. "If Sokka's crazy enough put himself on a glider and send four against a thousand? He may not _want_ to come back." She swallowed hard, and Suki knew by her posture how much she was fighting to keep her voice even.

She sighed, setting a hand on Toph's shoulder. "Sokka's a lot of things. Stupid isn't one of them. If he knows it's a lost cause, he'll pull out, because getting killed for no good reason isn't logical and he knows it. He's needed here."

"By who?" Toph spat. "The rest of us? Yeah, we're needed, 'cause the Avatar isn't gonna learn crap if there's no one around to teach him. Sokka's not a bender, he can't teach Aang anything important, and he knows it. He'd rather go down fighting than come back to face us with his tail between his legs."

"Just because he's not a bender doesn't mean he's useless." She frowned up at the sky, which was starting to darken ominously with smoke. "He may not be able to bend an element, but the boy has _brains_. The Drill would've destroyed this city long before now had he not figured out how to stop it." She smiled, though she knew the girl couldn't see it. "And don't think for a minute that he would want to leave us behind to go on without him. Especially not his sister. You know better than that."

She seemed to untense at that, but her expression didn't change. "I just hope _he_ does."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

The wall shuddered yet again with another volley of fireblasts, and Sokka could only watch helplessly as Aang doubled his efforst to maintain it while his sister tried to hold off the actual fleet. All he could do was try his best to keep back the flanks, and even that was getting to be a lost cause. They'd already reached the city. Bombs were already dropping. People were already dead.

_No. Not now. Don't think about it now_.

He fought to keep his focus through the haze of panic and noise. If it wasn't bombs behind him, it was fireblasts in front of him and shattering ice and screaming crewman and god he wanted them all to shut up. To give him a moment's peace. But such a thing was not going to happen tonight.

Another balloon went down at a lash of his whip as he looked up in time to see the second line loose a full blast into the one in front of it. Incinerating their own comrades as well as the rain of ice shards bombarding them, using the shrapnel from their remains to further hurl at the wall.

He'd seen plenty of Fire Nation cruelty. Villages razed, civillians killed. And what he hadn't seen firsthand, he'd heard plenty about. Torture, imprisonment, banishment of their own royalty. None of it really fazed or surprised him. It was war, and in war people tended to commit all sorts of savagery in the name of victory.

But the sheer ruthlessness of gunning down one's own people just to reach a target was a level of cruel he couldn't fathom until he'd seen it for himself. And even then it was hard not to think his eyes were tricking him. But the gigantic spiderweb cracks on the wall's outer face didn't lie.

He lashed his whip against another balloon, tearing into it even as he turned to see Aang racing to repair the damage, which was no small feat from what he could tell. Even as the cracks began to disappear back into solid ice, the new front line was already preparing another wave of fire.

But it was only when he watched Katara circle the top of the wall again that he saw it.

A lone balloon, broken off from the fleet and closing steadily toward the front line. Had there not been so much ice and fire being hurled back and forth in that direction, he wouldn't have found it strange. But there was, to the point that he could hardly see through the wall itself for the glittering shards and steam, and it begged the question in his mind of who would be stupid enough to think they could take it all on themselves when the front line of a standing air force was barely making a dent. All the while trying not to remind himself that he was one of only four against said standing fleet and the whole thing was his idea in the first place. Whoever manned that craft had a purpose, and he didn't like it one bit.

And there was nothing like a fireblast shooting right past his glider's left wing to make him turn around and pay better attention to his own predicament. Namely, being overtaken by the flanks in droves of five now, and who knew how many had passed him while he was watching his friends' desperate attempt to curb disaster.

His brow narrowed in concentration, and he readied the whip as he dove in for a sweep under the leading balloon of the formation. His hand tensed for only a moment as he flung the whip, the weight of the metal blades making it wrap around two of the basket's support cables. He brought both feet down to leverage his glider up onto the next thermal, dragging his capture with him even as they readied a fireblast to cut him loose.

He waited. Until he felt the telltale discharge of superhot air. With all the strength he could muster, he turned the glider about face and heaved the whip with both hands.

The fireblast sliced it free. That, he'd been expecting. But the crewman himself had not counted on the momentum to send his balloon crashing headlong into a line of his comrades like an unfortunate drunk in a mid-air bar brawl. The sound of splintering wood and snapping cables and tearing canvas rewarded him.

But he barely had time to savor the victory before the faintest flicker of blue light caught his eye, in the very corner of his vision. He turned to get a better look at it, and his heart and stomach both crashed somewhere around his ankles.

The lone balloon was bearing down on the wall, a good twenty feet above and behind the front line, but even from this distance he could see one of the crew circling their arms in a way he knew well enough, the blue crackle following the hands unmistakable.

A moment later proved him right when a monstrous bolt of lightning tore through the sky.

Aang himself dove out of the way in barely enough time as the fork went right through the wall, refracted in a blinding flash. Sokka winced his eyes shut in pain from the intensity, opening them again even though he knew he had no desire to.

The entire midsection of the wall was gone.

Not even a shard remained, the ice vaporized by the heat of the attack. The fleet wasted no time, ordering themselves to pour through the opening in the most efficient lines they could. He looked back toward the city wall, flames and smoke already peeking up from behind it.

He knew in his mind that it was officially a lost cause. There was no way in hell he, Aang, Katara, and Zuko were going to be able to hold them off again before they reached their target. But his heart, already sick with the dread he'd been carrying since they'd first headed for the temple, refused to accept such a thing. Refused to accept a complete, catastrophic failure such as this.

He whirled his glider around toward the incoming front line, screaming and not even hearing or feeling himself as he tore into them with what was left of his whip, not caring whether he hit man or craft, only concerned with disabling as many of them as he could in as short a time as possible. He didn't even see the fireblasts being flung at him. All he could feel at that moment was the roaring pain in his clenched chest and the sick feeling in his gut and the pounding in his head from how loud he was screaming.

He barely heard the snap of his harness as a well-aimed blast hit the side of his glider from underneath. Or the splintering of burning wood. But he felt the whip of the wind as he fell, looking up to see the remains of his hard work go scattering to the air in burning pieces.

Of all the ways he could've possibly died in a war campaign, this was not the way he wanted.

"Sokka!"

The voice was Aang's. So were the hands as they caught his shirt, and his entire body shuddered with the force of impact, momentarily winded.

"The mission's off," he said. "We have to get to safety."

Sokka turned to protest, but the look in his friend's eyes said everything he didn't want to.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

The signal flare was only one explosion among many, but as it was going into the sky rather than raining down from it, it was also fairly easy to find. The crushing weight of knowing they're efforts were largely in vain only made the faces of those waiting for them on the ground that much worse to see.

He scrambled into the tunnel after Katara, Suki having to forcibly pull Sokka in before Toph sealed the entrance behind them with a stomp and a shove of her arms. Zuko blazed a small fire in his palm to light their way as their comrades lead them on toward Central Camp, swallowing thickly at the look on Sokka's face.

The silence was nearly as crushing as the oppressive, musty air, punctuated by the roar of the carnage far above them. And it only got worse with every step, even the sound of war itself fading away the deeper the tunnel went. It wasn't too long before the familiar smell of pagoda wood fires met his nose, and the inviting glow of the camp welcomed them all with an eerie sense of safety.

Iroh's arms were around him in a tight hug before he really knew what was happening, and he returned the gesture with his own shaky embrace, too dazed to think about anything but how good it felt to not have to stand up anymore. Someone there to catch him, and they always had been, even when he was too stubborn to realize it.

But the relief of being welcomed and loved and even just plain _alive_ was brief, as he pulled away once he noticed Sokka push Suki and Toph and Katara all away from him, staggering toward the tunnel wall.

Katara followed him, reaching out a hand to his shoulder. "Sokka..."

"Just go," he ordered shakily. "Leave me alone, I'm fine."

"No you're not," she retorted. "I know you were counting on this and I know we lost, but don't--"

"Don't what?" he shouted, whirling on her, tears already glistening in his eyes and his voice rough and cracked. "Don't beat myself up over it? Are you _kidding_ me? That was _my_ invention, a weapon I helped create! A weapon I let fall into their hands! And now, it's been used to take out the _only Earth Kingdom stronghold left!_"

All eyes were on him now, and Zuko could tell by the look in each of them they felt the same reality slam them in the gut as he did.

"Ba Sing Se is _gone!_ And it's _all my fault!_ All those deaths? They're on my hands!" Indeed, he looked down at them, scratched and bruised and trembling, a look of horror on his face that Zuko hadn't ever thought the boy was capable of making. "_Millions of people_... Dead because of me..."

The realization seemed to hit him the moment he said it, as his legs buckled and he grabbed the wall for support, shaking like a poison victim and gasping for breath though his cries were barely audible. Suki and Toph were the only two brave enough to venture close, pulling him away from the rock and carrying him toward a lone, sheltered corner.

The sound of a bomb hitting directly above them shook the very walls of the tunnel, a wordless affirmation of all the fears none of them dared to voice.

END OF BOOK I


End file.
